So generally I’m not a fan of creative spellings of names. I prefer [name_f]Chelsea[/name_f] to [name_f]Chelsie[/name_f], [name_m]Robin[/name_m] to [name_f]Robyn[/name_f], Caiomhe to [name_f]Keeva[/name_f], etc.
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But I’ve been thinking about [name_f]Katelyn[/name_f], which is technically a misspelling based on an Anglicised pronunciation of the [name_m]Irish[/name_m] [name_f]Caitlin[/name_f]. Yet [name_f]Katelyn[/name_f] feels perfectly standard to me and doesn’t bother me the way that, say, Keightlynne might. It just seems like a more instinctive spelling.
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One of my favourite names is [name_f]Hekate[/name_f], but that spelling instinctively makes many people pronounce the name “He-Kate” instead of “Heck-a-tea”. And many non [name_m]Irish[/name_m] [name_f]English[/name_f] speakers will pronounce Caiomhe “Cammi”. Is it better to stick to the traditional spellings, knowing people will butcher the pronunciation, or consider an alternative spelling that’s more intuitive?
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I don’t know that there is one right answer and it may depend on things like cultural context as well. But what do you all think? Would you change the spelling of a name to clarify pronunciation? [name_m]Or[/name_m] would you keep the spelling the same and teach people how to pronounce it?
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I think it really depends on:
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[name_f][/name_f]- how well established is the alternative spelling [name_f][/name_f]- [name_f]Keeva[/name_f] and [name_f]Katelyn[/name_f] for example are well established [name_f][/name_f]- [name_f]Katelyn[/name_f] even more so [name_f][/name_f]- whereas Keightlynne is not
[name_f][/name_f]- are you from that culture [name_f][/name_f]- I’m not sure how I’d feel about respelling a name (unless if had passed into common usage) without being from that culture [name_f][/name_f]- or knowing the respelling is used culturally too?
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It’s a case-by-case scenario in my opinion!
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[name_f]Caitlin[/name_f] and its variants have become so popular outside of [name_f]Ireland[/name_f] that I think of it more so as a name with [name_m]Irish[/name_m] roots, rather than an [name_m]Irish[/name_m] name? The name has seen plenty of use multiculturally, and has been established in the American mainstream for decades (I remember you being American, but sorry if I’m mistaken!). It’s also not a name with special cultural significance to the [name_m]Irish[/name_m] (no more than any other [name_m]Irish[/name_m] name) so with all those factors considered, I think alternate spellings are obviously fine.
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I’m less sure about [name_f]Caoimhe[/name_f], because the name is pretty distinctly [name_m]Irish[/name_m] and has only seen significant use in [name_f]Ireland[/name_f] & the UK. The [name_f]Keeva[/name_f] spelling has never ranked highly anywhere. But like Greyblue said, it is[name_f][/name_f] an established alternative! So while this one is a bit less of an obvious “yes” than [name_f]Katelyn[/name_f], I still think it’s fine (from a non [name_m]Irish[/name_m] POV at least)
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I’ve expressed my opinion on [name_f]Hecate[/name_f] before in a similar thread you made, and I still think of it the same way? Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t be offended[name_f][/name_f] to meet a Hekati (or whichever spelling you’d choose) but I do find the idea slightly iffy since the name is culturally and religiously significant to a culture you don’t belong to. Maybe I’m biased because I’m Greek, but I don’t necessarily think so, because I’d have the same reaction if someone with no ties to [name_m]South[/name_m] [name_f]Asia[/name_f] used the Hindu god’s name [name_m]Vishnu[/name_m] and spelt it Vyshnu, for example. I think in cases like this I’d just try to enforce the correct pronunciation. [name_m]Even[/name_m] excluding the culturally iffy aspect, I think mythological names & names from folklore lose a lot of their historical gravitas & magic when the look of the name is changed and adapted.
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Technically the [name_f]French[/name_f] [name_f]Catelin[/name_f] / [name_f]Cateline[/name_f] is the “original” spelling of the name and [name_f]Caitlín[/name_f] / [name_f]Caitlin[/name_f] is just the [name_m]Irish[/name_m] version, so I don’t see the harm in using another well established alternative of a very popular international name. And that would make [name_f]Katelyn[/name_f] follow a lot of [name_f]French[/name_f] to [name_f]English[/name_f] name spellings like [name_f]Catherine[/name_f] to [name_f]Kathryn[/name_f] or [name_f]Caroline[/name_f] to [name_f]Carolyn[/name_f] / [name_f]Karolyn[/name_f].
[name_f][/name_f]For most names I would always suggest using the most common/popular spelling to help avoid confusion, but I also think spelling a name however you want is fine. Spellings and pronunciations vary in different cultures and languages, and as someone who is dyslexic I never really understand why[name_f][/name_f] things should be spelled a certain way only or the elitism of not using more unique spellings. It tends to be a very unpopular opionion here, but for some cultures invented names and misspellings are a part of them, and I think that tends to be forgotten here.
[name_f][/name_f]If a name is culturally or religiously sensitive, that’s a different topic, but I still think if the name is one you’re going to use anyway pick a spelling you’re most comfortable with. Anglicized names are harder, because they come from minority languages so being more sensitive to the wishes of that culture would be best. So for [name_m]Irish[/name_m] names that aren’t Anglicized often except for ease of spelling I would think it was culturally insensitive to Anglicize it (i.e. [name_m]Killian[/name_m] over [name_m]Cillian[/name_m] would be fine but Eefa over [name_f]Aoife[/name_f] would not be imo).
[name_f][/name_f]Again, as someone who is dyslexic, I couldn’t spell my very uniquely spelled middle (a version of Mckenzie) until I was an older teenager 
[name_f][/name_f] and that makes the spelling conversation a little different for me, as I had a hard time spelling any names for the first half of my life and just went with what made the most sense even if it didn’t to a lot of others (I had [name_f]Katelynne[/name_f] and Rosilee on my list back then, which are not the most phoenetic or most common of spellings, but made the most sense to my brain) and I always preferred spellings that made sense to me. Not every kid will deal with a disability, but it is something I always keep in mind as a possibility. For names like [name_f]Hekate[/name_f] / [name_f]Hecate[/name_f] (which is where [name_f]Katelyn[/name_f] hails from way back in its etymological line!) which are very popular/more well known in pop culture, I would go with the most common spelling in your country of origin, because pronunciations can be taught far more easily than spellings imo. [name_m]Even[/name_m] a lot of common names get misspelled occasionally, but if it matters to you that misspellings happen less, a more streamlined spelling may be best.
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For me… I probably just wouldn’t use a name that is not easy or familiar enough for most people to get right (no matter how much I liked it).
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But I understand that’s not the answer for everyone. And I don’t think either of your options (“keep the spelling and correct people” or “make the spelling intuitive”) are bad, that would really be up to you, and what would bother you more personally [name_f][/name_f]- having a name that regularly gets pronounced wrong, or having a name that is not spelled the usual way.
[name_f]Katelyn[/name_f] doesn’t seem te be a misspelling to me and I think it’s totally fine to use this spelling.
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In general, I would recommend sticking to the established spelling (or one of the established spellings if there are multiple accepted spellings), but I don’t think it’s necessarily wrong to use a different spelling if you have a good reason for it.
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Regarding pronouncation issues, I think I would usually keep the spelling the same and teach people how to pronounce it. However, although new spellings can look weird to me, I’m not against people using them. I actually think there is a certain beauty in words (or names of course) spreading around to world and being adapted to the local language.