See the results of this poll: Which spelling is better?
Respondents: 46 (This poll is closed)
- Schuyler (original Dutch spelling) : 17 (37%)
- Skylar (anglicized phonetic spelling): 29 (63%)
I would go for [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u] for a boy, and then all its variants [name_u]Skylar[/name_u]/[name_u]Skyler[/name_u]/[name_f]Skyla[/name_f] for a girl.
…However, I think the tie you have to [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] is greater/of more importance than the minor issue with “oh, but what if they think [name_u]Skylar[/name_u]'s a girl?” so I would pick [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] for you. You seem to love [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] more than [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u] so go with your heart.
I think [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] is the more aesthetically pleasing spelling. I knew a boy named [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] and I never thought it seemed feminine at all. Definitely unisex.
[name_u]Schuyler[/name_u]. [name_u]Skyler[/name_u] also works imo but I have only seen [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] on girls (though it doesn’t look feminine to me, really) so I personally would probably avoid that spelling.
I have [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u] on my own list for a boy. However, I do think [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] is more aesthetically pleasing. I also like the personal meaning that spelling has for your fiancé. For what it’s worth, I’ve met about the same number of male Skylars as female Skylars. It strikes me as truly androgynous rather than just masculine or feminine.
[name_u]Skylar[/name_u] - I always find [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u] to be confusing and want to pronounce it as Shoo-ler rather than [name_u]Sky[/name_u]-ler.
Most people probably wouldn’t even know that the original Dutch is emphatically male, so in that regard, the only benefit I can see is cultural value it holds for you. You sort of hit upon this point in our post, but he’ll probably have to clarify the spelling anyhow ([name_u]Skylar[/name_u] vs. [name_u]Skyler[/name_u]). The only thing that the [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] spelling has over [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u] is that it’s phonetic. People might not get the spelling right away, but at least the masses will know how to say it.
I grew up with a male [name_u]Skylar[/name_u], and I have a distant cousin that’s a boy under the age of 4 named [name_u]Skylar[/name_u]. The name reads masculine to me no matter how it’s spelled.
Well…i’d go for [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] or [name_u]Skyler[/name_u]. In Dutch we would not pronounce [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u] the same as [name_u]Skyler[/name_u], allthough i understand your connection to the spelling.
I have never seen any girls named [name_u]Skylar[/name_u], but that may just be me. I personally think it’s a lot more aesthetically pleasing, and the best choice. I’ve known someone named [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u] and everybody pronounced it “shoe-ler.” I get why using the original spelling is appealing, but names are Americanized for a reason. I would go with [name_u]Skylar[/name_u].
Thanks for the feedback! Y’all are convincing me that [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] is the way to go - I’m glad it seems genuinely unisex to y’all and not emphatically feminine.
That’s true! [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u] has been used as a first name in the US that is pronounced “[name_u]Skyler[/name_u]” since the 19th century - it was actually the first name of the vice president under [name_m]Ulysses[/name_m] S. [name_m]Grant[/name_m]! So it is definitely already an anglicized pronunciation, even though English speakers don’t find it intuitive. But the “sch-” in “school” and “schedule” are pronounced “sk,” and the “uy” in “guy” is pronounced “I,” so it does make sense in American English to have “Schuy” pronounced “sky.”
I’m curious - how would you pronounce in Dutch? I feel almost certain I’d find it nearly unpronounceable! I speak some Norwegian, but not Dutch.
Same. I’ve also met equal amounts of Skylers too.
I love [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u]. It will likely have to always be spelled anyway since there are so many spelling variations.
It’s a different degree, though! [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] could generally get away with “[name_u]Skylar[/name_u] with an A” but [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u] would have to really spell it out, and probably multiple times. And [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] wouldn’t get mispronounced, but I’d guess [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u] would get a lot of “Shooler” and “Shyler” and “Skooler.”
I prefer [name_u]Skylar[/name_u]. I’ve always pronounced [name_u]Schuyler[/name_u] as shoe-ler, and spelling it the original dutch way would just be asking for confusion, honestly. Like, I tend to prefer Gaelic spellings of names, but I wouldn’t use them because I know it would be awful for the poor kid. So if I was going to use, say, [name_f]Eibhlin[/name_f], I would just spell it [name_u]Evelyn[/name_u]. I think the [name_u]Skylar[/name_u] spelling is more aesthetically pleasing, anyway.