[name_m]Hi[/name_m] Berries! I have a bit of a name problem. Really, I shouldn’t be worrying about this seeing as I’m nowhere near having an actual child to name, but oh well.
Anyway, here’s my problem. [name_f]My[/name_f] all-time favorite name is [name_f]Annelie[/name_f]. You can read more about why I love it right here. It’s Nordic and pronounced like onna-lee. It’s such a beautiful name and honors my Nordic roots, which would mean a lot to me. The big problem is that, when most people see it, they will pronounce it like anna-lee. I’m unfortunately fully aware of how annoying a difficult-to-pronounce name can be on a person. [name_f]My[/name_f] mother has a very Norwegian name that is ALWAYS mispronounced. She’s at the point where she has given up correcting people. I asked her once why she doesn’t try to correct people more, and she says every time she hears her name mispronounced she just feels tired and doesn’t want to bother.
I’ve given up other names I liked because I didn’t want to give a future child a name that is always mispronounced. But I love [name_f]Annelie[/name_f], and I don’t want to give it up! So I had the idea that maybe I could give her [name_f]Annelie[/name_f] as a middle name, and an easier to pronounce first name, maybe an honor name, that she could use as a first name when being introduced to people she won’t see frequently.
[name_u]Or[/name_u] I could give her a hyphenated name, like [name_f]Annelie[/name_f]-[name_f]Ruth[/name_f], and she could be [name_f]Annelie[/name_f] around friends and family and [name_f]Ruth[/name_f] to baristas and substitute teachers.
What do you Berries think? Am I worrying to much? Would it be a problem for her to go by one name to strangers and one name to friends and family and classmates? [name_u]Or[/name_u] should I just let my future daughter have the same problem as my mother?
Thanks to anyone who read this novel-length post. Anyone who can help out is the absolute best!
-[name_f]Annabel[/name_f]
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Tbh I don’t this name would be too hard to fix the pronunciation. (Especially with Frozen being soo popular and the protagonist named ‘[name_f]Anna[/name_f]’) I know a teenager named [name_f]Anna[/name_f] pronounced ‘ahn-uh’ and she doesn’t have any problems with it. It only comes up if it’s someone she doesn’t know who has to read her name off a paper, then it just takes once to fix it. I feel like going by two different names would be more complicated than just fixing the pronunciation.
However if you really don’t want to bother with pronunciation I think [name_f]Annelie[/name_f] would make a gorgeous middle.
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as someone with a popular name i’ve never had this problem but i can imagine it’s incredibly frustrating when people pronounce your name wrong all the time. Having said that, i know a lot of people with unique names that are often mispronounced by substitute teachers etc but after one correction they usually get it right. Friends and family will quickly get used to the name and the pronunciation. I don’t think you should let go of a name you love and one that has connections to your heritage because of this. Also it’s not a completely shocking pronunciation, i think instinctively a lot of people would say [name_f]Anna[/name_f]-lee but onna-lee isn’t hard to get your head around.
there’s also always the potential nicknames nell / elle / ellie if in desperate need at starbucks etc. 
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@MargotAbeline and @LibelluleClaire Thanks for the comments! I think I might be overreacting just a bit…oh well, it’s been a long day. I’m glad to know you both think the pronunciation won’t be too difficult! 
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definitely not overreacting, it’s a very valid concern 
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Totally understand! We’ve been going back and forth on names for months naming a little person isn’t easy! ([name_m]Even[/name_m] when it’s a future little person!)
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Hmm, this is a tough one because I do think it would be mispronounced fairly often. I do think it’s an easy correction to make and as soon as she introduced herself, people would be able to say it. The only other thing I can suggest is spelling it Onnelie or Onnalie so people would know how to say it
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Thanks for the feedback! I think you’re right about the spelling, though spelling it with an ‘o’ would lose the Nordic connection.
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I definitely think you’re worrying too much. It’s such a simple fix, people will get it!
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I think it would be slightly confusing but could be fixed really easily by correcting it once!
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Pronouncing [name_f]Anna[/name_f] as “ahn-na” isn’t an unusual thing so I can see [name_f]Annelie[/name_f] working as well.
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Annelie is the type of name that needs one correction and done. I have a hard to pronounce name, but I’m fine with it. [name_f]Annelie[/name_f]-[name_f]Ruth[/name_f]’s nice too
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I have a fairly well known name and virtually everyone pronounces it wrong. You might be worrying too much. People who know her well should be able to remember how to say it right.
And then there’s all those variables we can’t control. She might prefer the more common pronunciation. She may be too shy to correct people. She might choose to go by her middle name. She might change her name entirely. So I would just use the name you love.
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