We live in the US and are thinking of naming our son Eze [name_m]Edward[/name_m] J******.
Some may not know how to pronounce it initially, but it’s pronounced like [name_m]Ezra[/name_m] without the ra at the end. The name Eze comes from a midevil village in [name_f]France[/name_f] and actually means King in Igbo, though we are not African American. Our other thought is to name him [name_m]Hezekiah[/name_m] [name_m]Edward[/name_m] and call him Eze for short. [name_m]Hezekiah[/name_m] was my great grandfathers name, but is it too hard for a kid to spell?
We have a VERY common last name so we’d like a unique first name. Thoughts?
In this case I would name him what you plan to call him. I think naming [name_m]Hezekiah[/name_m] when Eze is a standalone name is not needed. Does the [name_m]French[/name_m] village or African American connection have any meaning for you, or do you just think it is cool?
The [name_m]French[/name_m] Village of Eze was where we spent some of our vacation back in 2013. We fell in love with the village so thats our connection and thought it would be a cool unique name. We don’t have any African roots at all, but thought it was kind of cool that it does have a meaning- [name_m]King[/name_m] in Igbo which is an African Language.
Thanks for your thoughts! [name_f]Do[/name_f] you think we’ll have pronunciation issues with just Eze? We could add the accent grave (éze) which isn’t totally necessary. Not sure if that would help the pronunciation or not. It’s not common for American names to use this though.
The accent grave is actually the other way: Èze. I think it’s quite a cool-sounding name - kinda like [name_m]Ezra[/name_m] meets [name_m]Oz[/name_m], both of which I like. The story behind it is sweet too. My only hesitation would be that it’s not obvious how it should be pronounced; I would have assumed “EE-zee”, which is pretty teaseworthy.
Personally, I would probably call him [name_m]Hezekiah[/name_m], [name_m]Ezekiel[/name_m] or [name_m]Ezra[/name_m] and use Eze as a nickname, but I do think it could work on its own if you’re prepared for a certain amount of confusion when people first hear or read the name.
I think it’s cool and unique. I do think people will mispronounce it. I thought “E-Z” or “Eeeze” (like, to ease) when I first read it.
Is [name_m]Ezra[/name_m] too popular for your tastes? Because that would be a very easy way to the nickname Eze. So would [name_m]Ezekiel[/name_m].
That said, using Eza/[name_m]Ezekiel[/name_m] would lose the french-village connection which is meaningful to you, so if you don’t mind correcting people’s mispronunciation, I’d say go for it! Especially if your last name is very plain.
I would NOT add the accent grave. I think it only clarifies the pronunciation if you speak [name_m]French[/name_m], which the typical american doesn’t, so it will only further complicate an already unique name.
While the name does have an interesting sound, I didn’t know how to pronounce it until you explained the pronunciation (and I even speak [name_m]French[/name_m]). But an American wouldn’t assume it has a [name_m]French[/name_m] pronunciation, and as someone else said, the accent mark will be meaningless and confusing to most Americans (also, I believe you cannot put accent marks on American birth certificates). My first thought was “ee-zee,” second thought was “eez.” And I fear most people will think the same. I would say to go with a more recognizable name like [name_m]Ezra[/name_m] or Ezekial, and by all means use “Eze” (or even “Ez”) as a nickname.
I completely agree with katinka. I think Eze is a really cool name although it will definitely have pronunciation problems in the US. I don’t think [name_m]Hezekiah[/name_m] will have any spelling issues since he’ll learn it and that will be that just like any other name. I also like [name_m]Ezra[/name_m] and [name_m]Ezekiel[/name_m] too. It looks like you have some long options but if you are comfortable correcting people on the pronunciation of Eze I think people will catch on quick. [name_f]Hope[/name_f] this helps
Are you thinking of pronouncing it ehzz? That’s what I took from your write up. I’m not sure what the correct pronunciation is, but those I know (mainly Italians) pronounce the town “eh-zay”. That may not be right though. Goes to show that this name is pretty confusing - I speak decent french and wasn’t sure how to say it. To me if it is pronounced Ehzz it just sounds a good unfinished. I almost want to be ehzz…what!?
I think its a cool nickname but think it’s a good idea to have a longer more recognizable name on the birth certificate like [name_m]Ezra[/name_m].
I like Eze, but I like the idea of using the family name [name_m]Hezekiah[/name_m] and calling him Eze. It just makes sense. I hear you on the spelling issue, but at least he can learn to spell Eze first and [name_m]Hezekiah[/name_m] can come later when he’s really learning to read and write. Good luck!
I agree with katinka. I would name him [name_m]Ezra[/name_m] and use Eze as a nickname–it will cut down on so many pronunciation issues. Looking at Eze on its own, I want to say Eeze. If I knew the name was [name_m]Ezra[/name_m], I would automatically drop the -ra.
I’m a [name_m]French[/name_m] speaker, and even I wouldn’t have known how to pronounce it. I don’t mind the name, but just be prepared to explain it to everybody for the rest of your life. That’s also what you’re signing up your child for. Most English speakers would automatically think “ease” or “easy”.
