A woman claims she was recently stunned to learn that she and her entire family have been pronouncing her name ‘wrong’ for as long as she can remember.
She revealed all in a post on Reddit’s Am I The A**hole forum, where she explained that her mother picked her name as a baby and it was inspired by a character in a book she’d read.
The problem was, the parent had never actually heard the name said aloud, so she had come up with her own way of saying it.
The woman says her name is Saoirse and growing up no one had ever commented on the way her name is said, but she began questioning things when an Irish actress with the same name spelling rose to fame.
Her post reads: “My name is Saoirse. I am not Irish.
“My parents named me Saoirse because my mom was reading a book with a character named Saoirse and she thought the name was really unique.
“In her head, she thought the name was pronounced ‘Say-or-cee’ and my dad had never heard the name before, so that’s how I’ve grown up my whole life.
“Nobody else at school seemed to know the name either, so they trusted my pronunciation – up until recent years. A certain actress has become popular who shares my name, but she pronounces it the right way (Sur-sha).
“Most people who’ve just met me but have seen my name first call me by Sur-sha now, and I don’t correct them, because the fact that my name is a mistake is pretty embarrassing to me.”
The woman went on to say that she recently met an Irish girl who found her pronunciation absolutely hysterical when she introduced herself.
(Image: Getty)
This encounter got her thinking that it might be better if she used the ‘right’ way of saying her name from now on.
However, when she told her parents this was what she wanted, they got upset and confessed they knew her name was said the ‘wrong way’ but they liked it just how it was.
“Apparently they’d found out the pronunciation of my name much sooner than me, but decided it didn’t matter because they preferred Say-or-cee to Sur-sha.
“Honestly, I prefer Say-or-cee because I grew up with it, but I don’t think it will really matter a few years down the road. My sister – who has an English name – tells me it’s like I’m caving in to peer-pressure and disrespecting my family because of a few people at school.”
She then asked fellow Reddit users if she was wrong to ask people to pronounce her name differently now that she knew the truth.
Hundreds of people responded to her Reddit post, sharing their thoughts.
One replied: “Tell people to pronounce it the way you like it. It is your name after all.”
Another commented: “I’m Irish and think you should pronounce it however you prefer. I can totally understand why your parents would be upset though.
“FYI it’s more Sor-sha than Sur-sha.”
A third wrote: “Yes I believe Soarise Ronan said her mom used Sur-Sha because she liked it better, but OP it’s your name so your choice.
“My mom also gave me a less common pronunciation to a common-ish name and I would never correct people until I was much older and liked my name more. I know what I’d pick because I have an opinion about which sounds better, but that’s my opinion and should matter to you, same with your parents tbh.”
What would you do about the name if you were in her shoes? Let us know in the comments below.
