Are Eleanor and Elinor that different?

General Name Discussion
1

[name_f]Do[/name_f] the names [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] and [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] conjure up different images? If so, what sort of images?

(I prefer [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] but I know I’m the minority here…)

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2

To me, [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] looks like [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] spelt wrong. I know it’s not! But that’s what it conjures up for me, so I much prefer [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f]. [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] [name_f]Josephine[/name_f] is one of my favourite combos :slight_smile: x

3

I actually prefer [name_f]Elinor[/name_f]! I read it in Sense and Sensibility as a 12 year old and it took me a while to connect that it was the same name as [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] - a girl I went to school with whose name I didn’t much like! To me [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] is sleek, streamlined and a bit different, quirky and strong!

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4

I do not picture different people for the different spellings. I have only seen the [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] spelling on naming forums, the people I have known have spelled it [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f]. [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] to me, because that is what I have seen in real life, looks finished off and correct. [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] looks not complete and slightly off. If [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] is the spelling you are most comfortable with, or like best, use it. This is not a creative spelling, this is a preference. I prefer the spelling [name_u]Roan[/name_u], instead of [name_u]Rowan[/name_u], for a boy.

5

I know an [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] but not an [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f]. I have always had an aversion to [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] so my preference would be [name_f]Elinor[/name_f]. I agree with the previous comment that [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] is more streamlined.

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6

To me, [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] is Sense and Sensibility, introspection, and tea parties; [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] is more professional, and somehow reminds me of an intellectual, book-loving girl… I don’t know why…

7

I see them as different but I say them slightly differently as well: ‘el-IN-ah’ and ‘el-AN-ah’
I’ve known people with both names and so I tend to associate each with them. [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] is fun, quirky and always happy, [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] is intellectual, more quiet and determined.

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8

I pronounce both ‘[name_f]ELL[/name_f]-ih-nor’. I prefer the [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] spelling but I’ve only known Eleanors.

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9

Exactly this.

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10

I pronounce them a bit different. [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] is [name_f]El[/name_f]-lee-nor and [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] is [name_f]El[/name_f]-le-nor (like the ele in [name_f]Helena[/name_f]). I prefer the [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] spelling.

11

I prn them the same. I always spelled it [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f], but I like [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] as well.

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I prefer the [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] spelling. [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] is a serious, studious girl who is the intelligent class president. She’s organized, capable and a force of nature (eg. [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] of [name_f]Aquitaine[/name_f], [name_f]Queen[/name_f] of [name_f]France[/name_f] and [name_f]England[/name_f] as well as humanitarian First Lady [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] [name_m]Roosevelt[/name_m]). [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] is a gentle and reserved creature who gifted with common sense (eg. [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] Dashwood of [name_f]Jane[/name_f] [name_u]Austen[/name_u]'s novel “Sense and Sensibility”). While my mind knows the [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] is a legitimate spelling, my heart feels that it just looks like a phonetic spelling of the name so I think of it more as a modern invention. Yes, [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] may be more “streamlined” but I don’t think it looks as beautiful as [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f]. [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] “feels” colder than [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f]. In my opinion, [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] looks like a poor relation of [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f]. I feel the same way about many similar classic names: I love [name_f]Madeleine[/name_f]/[name_f]Madeline[/name_f] more than [name_f]Madelyn[/name_f], [name_f]Catherine[/name_f]/[name_f]Katherine[/name_f] vs. [name_f]Kathryn[/name_f], [name_f]Caroline[/name_f] more than [name_f]Carolyn[/name_f] etc…

13

I think overall, the names are quite similar, but they both project a different image for me. [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] is that quiet girl always sitting in the corner during recess reading some really thick classic book. But [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f], however, is that charismatic girl with a big, loud personality and lots of hair.

Pronunciation and spelling wise, I pronounce [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] and [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] the exact same ([name_f]ELL[/name_f]-uh-nor) and I like [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] and [name_f]Elinor[/name_f] almost equally - maybe [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] just a teensy it more.

14

They do conjure different images for me. [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] has more presence and more gravitas for me. The [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] spelling has been the name of several powerful women in history, including but not limited to [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] of [name_f]Aquitaine[/name_f] and [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] [name_m]Roosevelt[/name_m]. That pedigree gives the name well-established cache. I imagine a girl with that name growing into it and rising to the promise it holds. [name_f]Elinor[/name_f], however, just feels pretty; I worry that its bearer would be airy and insubstantial, just like the name strikes me.

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