[name]Hi[/name] everyone,
I am in need of some opinions, please–I have been having a struggle with my name lately. Here’s the deal:
- My given name is [name]Leslie[/name]. My surname is [name]Williams[/name]. I am 26/F.
Anyway, near the end of 2005/beginning of 2006 I began to play around with spelling my name ‘[name]Lesley[/name]’, as I had learned that it was the true (original) feminine form of the name. Being quite a feminine girl for the most part, I not only aligned with it for this reason, but I also thought it looked really pretty spelled that way.
In early 2007, I got all of the documents (through legal zoom) necessary for a first name name change, got my fingerprints put on a card at a local police station (as advised), filled out all of the paper work, and submitted it to my local courthouse a few months later. I never heard back from them regarding the matter–I come from a small town and they had said (when I dropped off the documents) that they really didn’t deal with/come across legalizing first name spelling changes often (if ever), but I am sure they still have my documents filed.
Anyway, I have been spelling my name ‘[name]Lesley[/name]’ until around February/[name]March[/name] of this year. Now I switch back & forth b/t ‘[name]Lesley[/name]’ and ‘[name]Leslie[/name]’, not being able to decide which I like better!! On my driver’s license & Passport, obviously, my name reads ‘[name]Leslie[/name]’.
I feel sort of torn; I think my parents (esp. my mom) adjusted to the ‘new’ spelling, but I do not feel as though my older brother nor extended family ever did. I have felt for years now that I was meant to be a ‘[name]Lesley[/name]’ and felt more than comfortable with it–I loved spelling it that way (it is spelled that way on my credit card, at my dr.'s, etc.).
Sorry for the long post, but I am currently sort of having a ‘name-identity’ crisis.
Should I keep ‘[name]Leslie[/name]’ feeling as though it is boring (it is a lot more common than ‘[name]Lesley[/name]’) and also partly feeling like it’s a unisex name (the girly-girl in me sort of hates this!), while ‘[name]Lesley[/name]’ is feminine and is not used for boys–in fact, I’ve never seen it spelled that way for a boy, whereas I have come across some (albeit older) gentlemen with the name [name]Leslie[/name].
What do you guys think?? BTW, my middle name is [name]Dana[/name] (which, of course, is also a unisex name, but as it is my mother’s name, and an uncommon middle name, I don’t have any issues with it. Plus it’s not my first name, but still,…haha).
Any input you may have would be GREATLY appreciated. [name]Feel[/name] free to share your thoughts, opinions, advice, etc. Thank you so much!
Best Regards,
L.D.W.
