‘It’s not that hard’: Mum slams mispronunciations of daughter’s name–can you get it right?

Naming your child is one of the most personal decisions a parent can make, but when an unconventional choice becomes the source of public scrutiny, things can take an unexpected turn.

One mum is facing frustration after her daughter's unique name has sparked confusion, even among medical professionals.

Despite her insistence that the name is simple, it’s clear not everyone agrees.


A British mum has gone viral after sharing her frustration about the difficulty others have in pronouncing her daughter’s name—something even her doctor struggles with.

Emma Hutton, 35, took to social media to vent about the constant mispronunciations of her daughter’s name, Elae, which she insists is not hard to get right.

The mother-of-two named her one-year-old Elae, pronounced ‘LA’, because she didn’t want her daughter to have a ‘boring’ name.


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Mum frustrated by constant mispronunciations of daughter’s name. Image source: TikTok/@emloublogger


Emma expressed her annoyance in a social media video, stating that even people she would expect to know better—like doctors—cannot get the name right.

She shared an experience where her GP mispronounced her daughter’s name as ‘Ellie’, and only realised his mistake after seeing her reaction.

‘He pronounced it wrong, again, he called her Ellie,’ Emma explained.

‘Then he just looked at me and went, ‘I’ve pronounced it wrong haven’t I?’

Emma then clarified how to say the name properly, noting that it is pronounced like the city of Los Angeles.

While she tried to explain, the reactions online were mixed, with many suggesting that if she wanted to avoid confusion, she should have gone for a more conventional spelling.


‘If people decide to spell names a little ‘different’, don’t get mad at those trying to pronounce it. We try,’ one person commented.

‘It’s not their fault, it’s yours. Why don’t people get it?’ another person added.

Others pointed out that they would have pronounced it as ‘ee-lay’ instead of ‘LA’, questioning why it wasn’t spelled as it sounds.

‘If it was pronounced ELL-AY that’s how it would be spelt, it’s phonetically incorrect sorry,’ one user said.


A few users even mocked the name, with one person commenting: ‘Sorry I mispronounced the weird name you made up.’

However, not all responses were harsh. Some users were more understanding, acknowledging the difficulty of unique names.

‘I have this with my daughters name too, her names Beau pronounced Bo not boo or bew,’ one shared.

Another person revealed how their daughter’s name, Tasia, was often mispronounced as ‘Tasha’ despite being spelt differently.

One user empathised with Emma, sharing how her daughter’s name, Zaila, was often mispronounced as ‘Zay-lia’, rather than the intended ‘Zay-la’.


Emma’s frustration wasn’t new. Earlier in January, she had shared a similar video about people misunderstanding Elae’s name, which had gained millions of views.

‘I’ve had people say that they feel sorry for my child, or that I’ve set her up for a lifetime of bullying,’ she said at the time.

‘They’ve called me a chav, or [say] that I’ve tried to win a competition for the world’s weirdest name.’


Source: Tiktok/emloublogger​


She added that while she didn’t mind the negative comments, it was unsettling that adults felt the need to share such harsh opinions about a child’s name.

‘I would never comment on a mum’s post telling her I think her baby’s name is stupid and horrible,’ she remarked.

Despite the backlash, Emma stood by her decision, insisting that her daughter’s name is unique and beautiful, regardless of what others think.


In the context of evolving naming trends, a recent Australian baby names report revealed that more and more parents are opting for short, unique names rather than traditional ones.

The report by McCrindle’s highlighted that younger generations were particularly keen on distinctive names, with names like Michael, Charles, and Quinn falling out of favour.

In a previous story, we explored how naming trends are shifting in Australia, with more parents opting for unique and short names.

As the popularity of traditional names declines, many are now embracing more unconventional choices.

To dive deeper into the rising trend of distinctive names, be sure to check out the full details here.

Key Takeaways
  • Emma Hutton, 35, went viral after expressing frustration about the mispronunciation of her daughter’s unique name, Elae.
  • Despite Emma’s explanation, many online critics suggested she should have used a more conventional spelling to avoid confusion.
  • Some people mocked the name, while others shared their own struggles with unique names.
  • A report revealed a growing trend in Australia for unique, short names, with traditional names like Michael and Charles losing popularity.

Naming trends are evolving, and it seems like more parents are embracing unique choices for their children.

Do you think unconventional names are worth the confusion they sometimes cause?

Share your thoughts in the comments below.
 

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Stupid, elitist, toss-pot parents lumbering children w appalling names that will cause the child, not parent, grief through mispronunciation, mis-spelling, bullying, and legal documentation nightmares until such time as the child lawfully changes the ghastly given name to a name less fraught.
 
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regardless of culture, names are not always spelled as they pronounced. I was in education for 51 years- 10K+ names. I often made mistakes. One girl said she had been in trouble with pronouncing her own name wrong even though she pronounced as it was spelled.
This woman doesn't know E in front of La will be pronounced. If she didn't want it like others have said - spell it La or Lah. So she didn't want a boring name- really? La is pretty boring.
 
My name is often pronounced incorrectly despite its easy spelling. Some replace letters, some change the sound of letters, some use another name that in their mind is the closest to it. I’ve even had someone accuse me of spelling my own name wrongly.
I find it all amusing.
Try growing up with the name Thecla. I can assure you it’s not a new fangled made up name. St Thecla is mentioned in the bible. Europeans seem to be the only ones that get it correct the first time
 
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Get used to it Aussies, as we get more migrants, we will get more difficult names to pronounce. They are mostly difficult to pronounce at first glance, but with a little patience most will come out right.
Seems like a more made up name to me try my name, and its been around for centuries
 
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I said it correct the first time.

People have trouble pronouncing my daughters name.

She was named after hubby's mum who had passed away when he was 14.

Her name is Pothiti an Ancient Greek name. Many Greeks also chose an English version. My daughter gets Poppy, Poppy is her middle name
Well done! I pronounced it "EE-LAY"... glad mum didn't hear!
How do you pronounce your daughter's name? I guess "POH-TEE-TEE"?
 
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Didn't have a problem pronouncing that name. My children & 3 of my grandchildren have unusual names. Although I don't think their names are hard to pronounce, others do. One of the children after turning 16 is now using her middle name as she says it is easier for people to say and she was sick of people not being able to say her real name correctly. I have told her, I & her uncle will only ever use her real name or the nickname given to her in childhood and thankfully she is fine with that. It annoys me that people don't bother to take the time to ask how to pronounce a persons name properly, it's not that hard to do.
I work with a number of people from different countries and never make an assumption about how their names are pronounced, instead I ask them how to say their names then write it down the way it sounds to me and then repeat it to myself until I can remember it off by heart. I prefer to do this rather than insult them by calling them by the wrong name.
 
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My name is often pronounced incorrectly despite its easy spelling. Some replace letters, some change the sound of letters, some use another name that in their mind is the closest to it. I’ve even had someone accuse me of spelling my own name wrongly.
I find it all amusing.
I have exactly the same problem, even though I use the shortened version it is pronounced incorrectly, even when I cut it right down to my family pet name, it gets the wrong pronunciation but I'm the one told either I don't pronounced it properly or don't spell in correctly?????
Yet when I was born parents were out allowed to use weird made up names for their offspring.
I've had to live with this for eighty-five years and only a four-year old intellectually challenged child got it right first try.
 
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I said it correct the first time.

People have trouble pronouncing my daughters name.

She was named after hubby's mum who had passed away when he was 14.

Her name is Pothiti an Ancient Greek name. Many Greeks also chose an English version. My daughter gets Poppy, Poppy is her middle name
When l got the birth certificate in the post l saw they had spelt my daughter's name with a j instead of a y like l wanted so we were stuck with Sonja instead of Sonya but it didn't matter . Her husband's name is Jason which has exactly the same letters
 
Get used to it Aussies, as we get more migrants, we will get more difficult names to pronounce. They are mostly difficult to pronounce at first glance, but with a little patience most will come out right.

Got nothing to do with migrant names - the stupid dill just wanted to get her face on "twit" or "tickatocka" - just one look at her pose (thinks she is Victoria Beckham). If you are going to give your kid a dumbass name, expect it to be mispronounced - perhaps paying more attention to spelling when she was at school could have helped - like a lot of parents who choose to adopt their own version of spelling common names. Pity the poor kids that has to grow up with these names.
 
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