Hubby & I have recently learnt we are in the early stages of our fist pregnancy.
We adore the name “Esmé” for a girl (pronounced Es-may). We are just a little unsure on how to spell it, as there seem to be many variations.
We want to ensure the pronunciation is interpreted as “[name_f]Esmay[/name_f]”, not “Esmeee” - so we want the spelling to suggest that.
I am a bit of a purist and do not love inventive spellings. However the traditional accent will not appear on any official documents (we are in Australia), so this makes me wonder if it is worth using it.
I have listed the variations - please share your opinions!
Esmé (traditionally male spelling, popularised as a female version by JD Salingers “To Esmé with [name_u]Love[/name_u] and Squalor”)
It s one of my very favorite names. I would go with option 1 or 2 because the accent would eliminate confusion and they are traditional.
Options 5 and 6 look too “yooneek” for my taste.
I would personally go with option #3: [name_f]Esme[/name_f]. Where I’m from, accents are an extra difficulty that would be hard to deal with. I think the pronunciation of [name_f]Esme[/name_f] is obvious and I like that it’s a bit simpler.
I would probably go with Esmée, since [name_f]Esme[/name_f] I say Ez-mee (I know one), and whilst Esmé may be simpler, it would grate on me slightly that it was the male version, even living in a non [name_m]French[/name_m] speaking country/area. [name_f]Esmay[/name_f] would probably be my second choice.
while I hate, HATE most phonetic spelling, [name_f]Esmae[/name_f] caught my eye. I think it’s a unique way of ensuring the name is pronounced the way you want it to be, while making it unique to your child also. And it’s not one of those bizarre looking made up names, it looks nice and sweet and soft.
I think it’s more known than you think. It’s the simplest and most commonly used and most expected spelling these days. And people who don’t know it will soon learn.
I would go with the traditional feminine spelling, Esmée. To me it is obvious how to pronounce it, the accent mark indicates that “may” sound. I always explain to people it’s like [name_u]Ren[/name_u]ée (feminine) and [name_u]Ren[/name_u]é (masculine). Without the accent I’d pronounce it Es-mee. I’m not a fan of the other unique spellings at all.
I’ve only ever met/heard of 3 people with this name. Girl in her early 20’s and Twilight “Ez-may” and a toddler “Ez-mee.” All 3 girls spelled it [name_f]Esme[/name_f]. My favorite spelling would be [name_f]Esme[/name_f] with either pronounciation.
Ugh, I have this SAME dilemma all the time. [name_f]Esme[/name_f] seems to be the most accepted, here, and I’m starting to lean that way myself. I, under no circumstances, can seem to get into Esmé, because it just seems rather [name_m]French[/name_m]-masculine (just like whenever I see [name_u]Ren[/name_u]é, I always assume man, like [name_u]Ren[/name_u]é [name_m]Descartes[/name_m], because of [name_m]French[/name_m] grammar rules!), and seems like a rather let-down of a “happy place” between the socially acceptable [name_f]Esme[/name_f] and the proper Esmée. For years I wouldn’t consider anything BUT Esmée, but lately I’ve been leaning toward [name_f]Esme[/name_f]; it just seems simpler and most people, if familiar with the name, will know to say ez-[name_f]MAY[/name_f]. Between [name_f]Esmae[/name_f] and [name_f]Esmay[/name_f], I like [name_f]Esmay[/name_f] more, because of [name_f]Ismay[/name_f].
I think I’d probably rank them [name_f]Esme[/name_f], Esmée, [name_f]Esmay[/name_f], [name_f]Esmae[/name_f], and then Esmé. ([name_m]Just[/name_m] noticed I’d forgotten the [name_f]Esmee[/name_f] option; I’d probably rank her between Esmée and [name_f]Esmay[/name_f]–in general I prefer accented to no, but when accents aren’t accepted on legal documents, what’s a name nerd to do?)