Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

> Siobhan

I'm not sure how you could possibly anglicize that, short of adopting an entirely new name. "Sean" would be phonetically close, but Siobhan is exclusively feminine.



Anglicise, surely ;0)>

"Shavaun" ~10 per million in US census name information. "Shavaughn" seems similarly [un]popular too.

Also, https://www.facebook.com/pages/Amusing-Misspellings-of-Siobh....


Anecdotally, I've never met a "Shavaun" (or "Chivonne", etc).

All the "Siobhans" I've met seemed proud of their Irish heritage and history. Making it easier and losing the Gaelic "bh" seems a bit more lower-class.


>"I've never met a "Shavaun" (or "Chivonne", etc)."

I wouldn't think I could say the same. My work means I do spell the names of most people I meet, but certainly not all. I consider my spelling to be very good but even so there are names each week that I can't spell [correctly] and/or have never written before. Homophonic alternative spellings appear to be in vogue.

As it happens I knew someone for maybe 20 years called Siobhan before I learnt that was how you spelt it; if she was using a alternative spelling I'd never have known.


It seems like there'd be a selection bias, and our cultural attitudes toward outsiders have shifted various directions over time - we're currently pretty accepting of the Irish.


As "Joan", "Joanna" or "Jane", presumably.

Slightly off-topic: I can't find a link, but I'm sure I read somewhere that Irish speakers in the nineteenth century would routinely anglicise their own names when writing in English: e.g., a man called Sean would sign letters as "John".



Sharon


Yes, I know it is feminine, but my mental list of Irish name is short


Irish curse.


It's usually anglicized as Shivon.


How 'bout Joanne?




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: