I don’t know much about [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] other than what’s already on nameberry. I’ve just recently discovered and started loving it. It feels unique and mystical to me but it doesn’t seem like something you’d never hear. I guess it kinda sounds familiar.
I don’t particularly care for [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] though. I don’t like how it’s spelled with how it sounds. It almost sounds like it could be some warrior princess name or something…
I personally don’t love [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] (although to the above poster: why are warrior princess names negative?!) because I’ve known a couple of not-very-nice girls with the name, and it also looks a bit like Xanax.
But I much but I prefer it to [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f], which I say EYE-AN-thee, like [name_f]Dianthe[/name_f] without the first letter rather than [name_m]Ian[/name_m] with an extra syllable.
I think more people would be able to pronounce [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f], [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] people will pronounce lots of different ways. So if that bothers you, you should go with [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f]. I do prefer the sound of [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] (I pronounce it the same as you). [name_m]Both[/name_m] of them are beautiful!
I had never heard of [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] before joining Nameberry, and before this thread had no idea how to pronounce it. Personally I think the X is awfully harsh and it seems like a heavy name for a little girl to bear.
I [name_f]LOVE[/name_f] [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f], it’s a guilty pleasure of mine. I like that it has a mythological connection to the ocean as well as being a flower name (sort of). I pronounce it EYE-AN-thee, though.
[name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] looks cool (any name with an ‘x’ is automatically edgy!) but to me it looks less appealing - while it looks fierce because it’s slightly similar to [name_f]Xena[/name_f], it does remind me a tad of Xerox, plus, although it’s got a similarly long history to [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f], it doesn’t have the same lovely meaning and origins. That said, I agree that [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] might have more pronunciation issues than [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f], so on a practicality basis, [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] might be best.
Possible pronunciation issues don’t bother me or my husband at all. We have both dealt with the occasional mispronunciation of our names, and it’s really not a big deal. We just politely correct them, they get it, and move on. Really simple. I prefer [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] myself! I prefer the way it looks and sounds, plus I love it’s meaning and history. My husband slightly prefers [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] though, but he does love both. I’m not sure if either is going to make the final cut for our daughter’s name yet (if either did made the cut it would probably be [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f]), but we want to go to the hospital with at least 2 or 3 names, so we’re exploring all our possibilities. Thanks everyone!
I do have a question about [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] though - Was she the daughter of [name_m]Oceanus[/name_m], or an ocean nymph? Or both???
I’ve looked the name up on different websites and I’ve seen both. I love mythical names, but I don’t know a whole lot of details about mythology. So, if anyone could clear this up for me, it would be very helpful!!!
Priestess to the rescue! I’m a Greek pagan priestess so I’m here to help.
In Greek, [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] is ee-AN-the (I is pronounce ee in Greek). [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] was one of 3,000 Oceanids, daughters of the [name_m]Titan[/name_m] [name_m]Oceanus[/name_m]. Each was the patroness of a particular spring, river, sea, lake, pond, pasture, flower or cloud. [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] was a nymph of violet rain clouds or violet flowers. There’s also 98 [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] which is a main belt asteroid.
[name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] is [name_m]ZAN[/name_m]-thee. [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] was also one of the Oceanids. She is also listed as one of the Amazons. [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] [name_f]Terra[/name_f] is also a region on [name_m]Mars[/name_m]. And Xanthi (pronounce the same way) is a city in Thrace.
Of the 2, I prefer [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f]. I just like the cool X sound and there’s less chance of mispronunciation.
I love names with legitimate X’s and Z’s in them, for one. So that’s a point for [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f], along with the fact that the zan-thee pronunciation is legit and appealing.
I love [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f]'s meaning - violets are a favourite flower of mine - and I’d like to use a name that starts with I for family reasons. But I secretly, much to my shame and probably dantea’s disgust, really want a name that starts with a hard EYE sound or at least a short i sound (like [name_f]Imogen[/name_f]). [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] pronounced like [name_m]Ian[/name_m] isn’t too hard to use or anything, I just was so disappointed that it’s not like the English pronunciations of [name_f]Iris[/name_f] or [name_f]Irene[/name_f].
[name_f]Iris[/name_f]/[name_f]Irene[/name_f] are also ee’s in Greek, I believe… so I wonder if eye-anth-ee is a legitimate English form even if all wrong for Greek? I know British people who say [name_f]Ione[/name_f] eye-oh-nee? Dilemma.
I think I have to give the nod to [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f]… though just barely. [name_m]Both[/name_m] are lovely.
[name_f]Irene[/name_f] in Greek is [name_f]Eirene[/name_f], which is why it’s pronounced differently. and [name_f]Iris[/name_f] is ee-rees. I is an eta and it’s pronounced ee. Those are the English pronunciations. And it doesn’t disgust me It’s frustrating when people don’t pronounce the easy ones right (like I can see why no one pronounced [name_f]Hermione[/name_f] right or why there’s resistance to saying [name_f]Circe[/name_f] right).
I really like both. I pronounce [name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] as EYE-AN-thee too, though as pointed out is wrong for Greek pronunciation. Because of that I now slightly prefer [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f].
Vibes I get…
[name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] - Creative, happy, open minded
[name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] - High energy, spirited