I know my partner likes the name [name_m]Alistair[/name_m], but I vetoed it because it’s a long name without good nn potential, I’m not a fan of [name_m]Al[/name_m], and [name_u]Ali[/name_u] and [name_f]Alis[/name_f] are too girly for my tastes. But yesterday I saw someone on the form using Dare as a nn for [name_m]Alasdair[/name_m], and I think it’s really cute. [name_m]Alasdair[/name_m] meets both my partners and my criteria, it’s three syllabels like our other kids names and it’s gaelic which is something my partner is keen on due to his family heritage. I’m just wondering if this name is too much, too unfamiliar, daring etc… what are your thoughts?
My favorite spelling of the name is [name_m]Alaster[/name_m], is [name_u]Lex[/name_u] as a nn way too much of a stretch?
[name_m]Alasdair[/name_m] is pronounced the same as [name_m]Alastair[/name_m], with the D sounding like a T, so the nickname ‘Dare’ suggests to me that you’re pronouncing it wrong (especially as the last syllable is much more like ‘stuh’ than ‘stair’)
[name_m]Alasdair[/name_m] is fairly familiar in the UK, so not odd here. Guessing you’re in [name_u]North[/name_u] [name_u]America[/name_u] though, and I can’t speak for there. It’s such a handsome name, I don’t think a nickname is needed! I can see your point with [name_u]Ali[/name_u] and [name_f]Alis[/name_f], but of the Alastairs/Alasdairs I know, they go by either their full name or just [name_m]Al[/name_m], which has never felt girly to me. [name_u]Lex[/name_u] is too much of a stretch for me- I’d assume he was an [name_u]Alex[/name_u].
I like the idea of Dare as a nickname for [name_m]Alasdair[/name_m]. [name_m]Even[/name_m] if you’re pronouncing it right (with a T-sound) I think Dare still works. It’s admittedly kind of out-there for [name_u]North[/name_u] [name_u]America[/name_u], but has become a bit more familiar in recent years due to Mad-Eye [name_m]Moody[/name_m] from the [name_m]Harry[/name_m] [name_m]Potter[/name_m] series, whose first name is Alastor. I think you could get away with it.
^I agree about Dare being a bit of stretch for [name_m]Alasdair[/name_m] if pronounced properly but the nickname is so cool that I actually like the idea.
Thanks for the input! I may have to take this name off my list, I was pronouncing it wrong and I really can’t get behind any of the nn’s from the correct pronunciation. I was really excited about this name, but alas, onward!
I just looked on here How to pronounce Alasdair? (RECOMMENDED) - PronounceNames.com and there were submissions from people in Scottland that pronounce it [name_m]Al[/name_m]-las-dare, maybe it’s just one of those names that can be pronounced in more than one way.
I took a look at that site- seems to me that one person submitted his name twice, with different pronunciation guides. There are some to the contrary here: Alasdair MacIntyre pronunciation: How to pronounce Alasdair MacIntyre in English
Alasdair pronunciation: How to pronounce Alasdair in Scottish Gaelic, Scots
I’m sure there are people who pronounce it with ‘dare’, but I’ve just never heard that version here. And my cousin is married to a Scotsman called Alasdair and he’s always been very insistent that the correct Scottish way is AL-uh-stuh, which is why I believe the pronunciation with the ‘d’ to be wrong, sorry!
The people on that site seem to be pronouncing it [name_m]Al[/name_m]-is-Der at least to my ears!
I think it’s just one of those names… like [name_m]William[/name_m], it can be [name_m]Will[/name_m]-E-Um or [name_m]Will[/name_m]-Yum depending where you’re from.
I don’t think it’s too weird. Uncommon here in the US, but not unheard of. I’ve not heard it pronounced with “dare” at the end, but not all nicknames match the root name completely. [name_f]Katherine[/name_f] to [name_f]Kate[/name_f], [name_f]Margaret[/name_f] to [name_f]Maggie[/name_f], [name_u]James[/name_u] to [name_m]Jim[/name_m]. I think Dare still works. I also think [name_u]Lex[/name_u] is usable. It does sound like it comes from [name_u]Alex[/name_u], but [name_m]Alasdair[/name_m]/[name_m]Alistair[/name_m] is a version of [name_m]Alexander[/name_m], so why not? Personally, I like just [name_m]Alasdair[/name_m] without a nickname.
Also, I agree with you, in those Forvo ones charlieandperry1 posted I hear [name_m]Al[/name_m]-iss-der, not [name_m]Al[/name_m]-uh-stuh.
This one for MacAlasdair sounds like he’s saying [name_m]Al[/name_m]-uhs-dar (sort of, it’s hard to write pronunciations!), which is closer to “dare”. I think it’s an issue of differences in regional dialect and accent more than anything.
I must be going deaf then. I can’t hear a ‘D’ at all.
I’m going to put this down to one of those American accent things where some sounds become indistinguishable (e.g. KAH and KARE) because stuh and dare sound very different to me and, try as I might, I cannot hear ‘dare’ in any of the pronunciations posted.
Thanks for all the help with pronunciations! I like the pronounciation [name_m]Al[/name_m]-Uhs-Dar or [name_m]Al[/name_m]-liss-Der, I’ll have to put more thought into it as I only discovered the name yesterday, but it might be a contender esp if you guys think Dare still works for a nickname
No, it definitely isn’t DARE at the end, not in any of the Forvo pronunciations, but there is a D sound in the first one you shared most definitely (but, that is an American speaking, so maybe that’s why). The female pronounces it somewhere between a T and a D sound. But they both definitely say the R sound, so -der or -ster at the end, not -stuh. In this one for “[name_m]Alastair[/name_m]” I hear the -stuh you’re talking about. It does not sound the same as the other examples you shared. http://www.forvo.com/word/alastair/#en
We’ll have to agree to disagree! I’ve listened to that American one over and over and I can’t make out the D. I never said the people in the forvo pronunciations were saying ‘stuh’ at the end, that’s just my own pronunciation, which sounds pretty much the same as ‘ster’ anyway (to my ears. You’ll probably disagree.)
I love [name_m]Alasdair[/name_m] nn Dare.
Use it.
I love Alasdair and I think Dare is fine.
I will never understand the rigidity of some people on the nickname front. It’s a nickname. Many people are called completely random nicknames that make no sense from their given name (I have an Uncle whose birth name is Roger and he goes by Jack… No relation to his middle name either.)
My dd is Cordelia and her nn is “Cia” (said “Kia”).
It’s a nickname, don’t overthink it.
Alasdair was on my list for a long time (still is, he just won’t likely be a candidate), I think the pronunciation is a cross between a t/d, depending on dialect, accents etc. if you use this spelling, regardless of how you say Alasdair, Dare could still be a nn, no problem.
Kind of like Van being a nn for Donovan… I’ve never met a Donovan that pn his name “Don-oh-VAN” it’s always been “don-oh-vin” but I know Donovan’s that go by Van.