Okay, I’m new here (hello! waves) but have for a long time observed the immense help given to the troubled name nerds by the brilliant members of this board, and I was hoping I could maybe get some help as well?
I have some questions concerning names I really like, but am unsure about…
First up: [name]Ivo[/name] (male)
I love the name, but somehow thought it was pronounced I-vo and not EE-vo when I first heard it… I find the first pronunciation much more appealing, but would that be troublesome? and unnecessary? considered dumb? or worth the trouble? which pronunciation do you like best?
Second: Idumea (eye-dew-[name]MAY[/name]-ah)
It’s the name of a beautiful song, sung by one of my favourite musicians… It’s the Greek name for Edom (in [name]Israel[/name]) and means red, although it is not listed as a baby name anywhere (and I mean ANYWHERE)… Could I still use it?
Third: Olava (o-LAVA)
My father’s name is [name]Olav[/name], and the Norwegian feminine form is Olava… I would very much like to honour him, but I’m afraid of the LAVA part… I don’t want my girl to be teased, but I need a second opinion… I know kids can be cruel, but by the time they learn what lava is, won’t they have found something else to tease her about, or become used to her name? or is that just wishful thinking?
Fourth: [name]Dieter[/name]
Pronounced [name]DEE[/name]-ter, but could be mistaken as someone one a diet… Should I leave it on my list?
Thank you for any help!
And if it matters, I am Norwegian, but I am likely to live in [name]England[/name] for the rest of my life… ^^
[name]Ivo[/name]: I’ve never heard this name before, so I’m not sure if it’s for a boy or a girl. With so many Evies running around, it strikes me as a feminine name, especially the ee-vo pronunciation. If it’s a girls’ names, you could always nickname [name]Ivo[/name] “[name]Ivy[/name].”
Idumea: I’ve never heard this before, either, and I have to be honest and say that it’s really out there for me. I wasn’t sure how to pronounce it, but I think it’s eye-doom-ee-uh? If you love it, I think you could use it.
Olava: I do hear the Lava part, so if that bothers you, I wouldn’t use it. What about [name]Lavinia[/name]? I always worry about teasing, too, but I’m not sure that Lava would be a source of teasing.
Fourth: [name]Dieter[/name]: I associate this names with [name]Saturday[/name] [name]Night[/name] Live ([name]Mike[/name] Myers and the Sprockets), but yeah, it’s also the word dieter.
Thank you for replying, [name]Jill[/name]…
I know the names are a bit out there, but that’s mainly why I like them so much ^^
[name]Ivo[/name] is a variation of the French [name]Yves[/name], and is a boys name. (silly me for thinking it was obvious… ^^) It means yew, or archer, and the main reason I like it so much is the Norwegian film maker [name]Ivo[/name] Caprino, whose films I grew up with and have seen around [name]Christmas[/name] of every year since I can remember… (in case you were interested in knowing)
I haven’t thought of it sounding feminine with the EE-vo pronunciation before, but now that you mention it, I have to agree ^^ I think this is partly why I like the I-vo version better, not that I’ve been able to tell why until now, so thank you for that!
I didn’t know about [name]Saturday[/name] [name]Night[/name] Live! I have to look into that… I don’t want people to associate my boy’s name with something bad or silly or whatever… I want him to be taken seriously.
I thought it was I-vo not ee-vo also. That does change things. I think you can call him I-vo and he will always be correcting people, although not everyone apparently. I am not sure how I feel about that, actually. Some people will be pedantic about the correct pronunciation and think you are ignorant instead of creative. I recently met a [name]Megan[/name] called Meeegan, not [name]Maygan[/name] or [name]Meggen[/name], and I used to know a [name]Nina[/name] who was Nine-ah, not [name]Neena[/name]. I’m pretty sure those are valid variations but still, lot of hassle for a 3 letter name.
Then Idumea. I like it. I assume since it’s a song, you know how to pronounce it. I’m not sure most people will, but a different case than [name]Ivo[/name]. [name]Ivo[/name] will be I-vo! It’s starts with an I, get it? It might frustrate him. Idumea, people will ask about it, what does it mean, probably. She would also hear people saying it wrong and maybe give up correcting them. I imagine the person who calls up [name]Ivo[/name] to schedule a job interview will ask for [name]Ivo[/name] or [name]Evo[/name], where as the person calling up Idumea will ask for “uh, I’m not sure I’m saying this correctly…” At least I think nobody’s ever met an Idumea, whereas if someone knows another [name]Ivo[/name], they will say his name like the other one(s) or wing it, and a relative high percent of the time, correctly.
They are both nice names, not sure if I would chance [name]Ivo[/name], maybe [name]Ivan[/name].
I don’t know about Olava. A middle name can be cryptic like that. I think about it for a first name and I’m not struck by its potential awkwardness as hard as I thought. I think it could be used. If two names can be equally uncommon, I’d hit for the one with meaning and a not awful sound. I can actually picture a kid getting along with that name just fine, considering it is meaningful to you, has a pretty sound, and a lot of other names I’ve seen in the past few days I can’t believe people actually do like. I think I’ve convinced myself to love it. I’m not kidding. By the time kids know about lava, they probably will make the connection, but I don’t think it’s a bad word like if it rhymed with mucus. People choose names that rhyme with mucus. Lava is brilliant beside that.
I don’t really like [name]Dieter[/name]. I like maybe [name]Friedrich[/name].
