So I often see the nn [name]Jem[/name] proposed for [name]James[/name] as an alternative for [name]Jim[/name]. The thing is I pronounce them the exact same way. A large part of Americans pronounce e and i the same way in front of an m or n.
So [name]Emma[/name] –> Imma [name]Penelope[/name] –> Pinelope, etc…
Would it bother you that your [name]Ben[/name]'s name is pronounced Bin?
I saw another poster saying she likes [name]William[/name] pronounced [name]Will[/name]-i-um, not [name]Will[/name]-yum. I don’t really know anyone who pronounces it that way, though.
I’m American, living in the Midwest. I’ve always been confused by this-- to me, [name]Jem[/name] is distinctly different from [name]Jim[/name], and [name]Emma[/name] from Imma. I pronounce [name]Penelope[/name] like punelope or pinelope, but that’s more because I’m lazy. I’ve noticed that the tryndeighs sometimes replace an E with a Y-- for example, they mean [name]Brenna[/name] but spell it [name]Brynna[/name].
Also, to me, will-i-um and will-yum are pretty much the same-- will-yum is just a faster will-i-um.
yes, to you [name]Jem[/name] and [name]Jim[/name] are different - but I will always pronounce them the same way. And it’s hard for me to hear the difference.
I’m curious where you’re from, because I’ve never heard anyone pronounce these the same way. [name]Emma[/name] and Imma don’t sound the same at all for me. I say [name]Penelope[/name] like [name]Pen[/name]-el-uh-pee.
[name]Do[/name] you say them like I or like E? My best friend pronounces pillow like pell-oh and milk like mehlk, but she’s the only one I know that does that. In Pennsylvania everyone pronounces crayon like crown, when I (and everyone else I know in [name]Cali[/name]) says it like cranberry, minus the berry… my mom says she says cray-on, but she doesn’t really. I guess people just pronounce things differently.
I say [name]Jem[/name] with a short “e” sound. I say [name]Jim[/name] with a short “i” sound.
I say [name]Pen[/name]-ell-oh-pee.
I say [name]Emma[/name] with a short “e” sound.
I think I say something that’s somewhere between the two pronunciations of [name]William[/name].
[name]Emma[/name] and Imma are completely different.
I’ve only ever heard [name]William[/name] with two syllables.
I say Puhnelope if I’m in a hurry, but if I slow down or emphasize the name, I will say a definite “pen”.
Simply put, unstressed vowels tend to become indistinct. I’d expect a vowel at the beginning to generally be emphasized, so uh-ma for [name]Emma[/name] makes no sense to me. Likewise, if there’s only one vowel ([name]Ben[/name]), it’s more likely to be emphasized.
It’s true that some regions of the country don’t really distinguish the short vowel sounds - bag and beg, pin and pen, [name]Jim[/name] and [name]Jem[/name], [name]Erin[/name] and [name]Aaron[/name] etc. But what are you going to do? If it bothers you, then avoid those names I guess - but I would hate to skip a name I love because some people in some parts of the country might say it differently than I do.