What do you think of the name [name]Imogen[/name]? I am considering it for my baby, but don’t know how she’ll be perceived in the US with this name.
I do realize that she will be called “Im-oh-gene” here, and not the beautiful “Im-oh-jen” like in Britian, but I think I’m OK with that. My grandmother’s name was [name]Jean[/name], so it would be a nod to her.
And for those of you in Britian, what do people named [name]Imogen[/name] usually shorten it to, if anything?
I think [name]Imogen[/name] is a gorgeous name, but i’m in [name]Britain[/name] so I don’t how people in [name]America[/name] would pronounce it. I know a lot of Imogens here, and most of them go by their full name, but a couple of them are sometimes called [name]Immy[/name]. =)
I pronounce [name]Imogen[/name] I-mo-zhen like [name]Imogen[/name] [name]Coco[/name] (sp?). I am from [name]America[/name]. If I had a little girl named [name]Imogen[/name] or [name]Imogene[/name], I would call her [name]Immy[/name].
I would have pronounced it Im-oh-gen and I’m American too. Maybe it’s a regional thing to pronounce it Im-oh-geen. (I feel like I read somewhere that the “geen” pronunciation is more prominent in the South, but I have no idea where I read that.)
I love the name [name]Imogen[/name] and very nearly used it for dd2, even got dh to agree to [name]Imogen[/name] [name]Lucy[/name] C_____. I loved the sound of nn Immi [name]Lu[/name].
Unfortunately if didn’t survive my 2 week mental trial. I usually only give 1 week trials (where spend all my naming energy concentrating on a single name from my short list to get comfortable with it and see how it might sound in imaginary real life situations) but I gave this one an extra week. The thing that finally killed it for me was thinking about how my family in [name]Canada[/name] (I’m in the UK now) would receive the name…[name]Imo[/name]-what??? I was more worried about them saying it im-oh-ghen (kind of like megan). I just didn’t think they’d be able to say it nicely without coaching.
Maybe [name]Imogen[/name] has had more exposure in n.america these days? [name]Hope[/name] so, cause it’s on my short list again for no. 3 due in april.
Also, I think the british singer/songwriter/producer [name]Imogen[/name] Heap goes by nn Immi.
I’m American and I would pronounce it imo-jin not imo-gene. But maybe we all pronounce it right here because we’re name aficianados (read: name nerds) and know better. I love the name but the thought of people saying imo-gene makes my skin crawl. If an occasional mispronunciation doesn’t bother you as much, then I say go for it–it’s lovely! And I, too, like [name]Immy[/name] for a nn.
[name]Imogen[/name] is one of my favorite names. When I say it (Texan) it comes out Im-ah-jen or Im-uh-jen. I don’t mind [name]Imogene[/name], but I would correct people who pronounced it -jean, so I prefere the spelling [name]Imogen[/name] without the e at the end.
A kind of French nn for it would be [name]Ginette[/name] (little [name]Gen[/name]), a French roommate of mine, [name]Virginie[/name], went by nn [name]Ginette[/name] and I think it could work for [name]Imogen[/name] as well.
NNs are a personal choice, and so is pn to a great extent. People mispronounce my name all the time- [name]Jacquelyn[/name]. They say “[name]Jack[/name]-lyn” but I was raised to pn the ‘que’ so it is more like “Ja-kwuh-lyn”.
No matter what name you choose, you will have to also choose the pn, which makes even common names more unique!
I suppose you could also do ‘[name]Mo[/name]’ for nn. I know a couple guys that go by nn [name]Mo[/name] so it seems a bit masculine to me. Although, I also know of some girls fn [name]Morag[/name] and [name]Morven[/name] who go by nn [name]Mo[/name].
There’s also [name]Gen[/name] (like nn for [name]Genevieve[/name]) or at a stretch the more standard [name]Jen[/name] if you don’t like the look of [name]Gen[/name].
I really love the name [name]Imogen[/name], and I pronounce it IM-eh-jen, like [name]Pam[/name] and [name]Linda[/name]'s phonetic spelling on Nameberry.
I’m from Australia and thought I’d throw in our pronunciation, which is also Im-a-jin. A nickname we use here is “[name]Imo[/name]”, but us Aussies add an ‘o’ to the end of everything!
Thanks for all the feedback, everyone! I’m glad to hear that many people know the proper way to pronounce [name]Imogen[/name]; most of the people I’ve been talking to (friends and family) thought it was “Im-O-gene”!
I think if I were to use this name (we still have so many on the table right now), that I would go with the Aussie nickname of [name]Imo[/name]! I adore it!
I’m sure I’ll be back soon for opinions on some of our other names! Thanks so much for your help!
I seem to be one of the only people that does “get” this name. I cant quite wrap my head around what i find off with it, but it doesnt seem right to me. I pronouced it Im-Oh-[name]Jen[/name]. I was thought i was pronouncing it wrong though. I happen to think that alot of poeple who do not really like names will be put off by it you know? Like what is that? and will probably automatically asume that shes a foreign girl. Not that thats bad, jsut saying. I really dont think that most people will understand it in america, some people will really like it and some people (i would say more then with some names) will be put off by it. Not trying to sound mean but i know i am put off by it, so i think more people then most would think will be too.
My daughter is considering [name]Imogen[/name] for her baby if it is a girl. She would pronounce it as Im o jen. We live in Australia and her combo was [name]Imogen[/name] [name]Bluebell[/name].
I think its fine. Maybe find a cute nickname too. When I first read it, my thought was of an old little lady, like my great-aunt [name]Gert[/name]. But, it’s your choice and other people shouldn’t judge because they have their cahnce.
I heard this name about two years ago when an acquaintance couple, American and British, chose this name for their daughter. I heard the British pron. from them and the name was not really on my radar before, so that’s how I think of it. It is becoming increasingly common in the US (not at all popular or overused though) so I think it’ll become easier for people to say/pronounce as they come across it more often. Personally it’s not a favorite name of mine, definitely seems British which is usually appealing, but the sounds and the feel of it, are a bit starchy to me.
I pronounce it Emmajen - [name]Em[/name]-ah-gin. It’s in the same style as a lot of the names I like, but for some reason, I am not too crazy about it.
If you nickname her ‘[name]Jen[/name]’ it may help to reinforce the ‘im-oh-jen’ pronunciation (if that’s what you prefer). I personally think it is lovely and quirky without being ridiculous, and something that can be used throughout childhood + adulthood. My name is [name]Kim[/name] and I went by [name]Immy[/name] through high school (not the obvious choice, but my friends baby brother started calling me it and it stuck) and I had absolutely no troubles with it at all - I even had it printed on my yr12 jersey.
