View Message

This is a reply within a larger thread: view the whole thread

Re: Trying to name a girl
I don't think they're directly related but all the Marin/Marens I've ever know have pronounced it like "MEH-rin" or "MAIR-en"I think it's simply a case of all the names sounding similar and so people just start to pick and choose which spelling they prefer, regardless of its origins. Also the "MAIR" sound and it's similarity to Karen/Sharon, make it sound pretty feminine to modern ears, I think. _______________________________________
“All generalizations are false, including this one.”my names list:
http://www.behindthename.com/pnl/111261**currently my keyboard.... sucks. So please forgive my likely spelling errors**
Archived Thread - replies disabled
vote up1

Replies

... I don't understand how a letter A can make the sound "EH". In Dutch (the language where Maren is from) it's mah-ren, or so I have read. In Romanian (where they use boys' Marin) it's definitely mah-rin.I can't understand either how Karen and Sharon sound like "mair" either. The vowels aren't even similar to me. They both have shot A vowels.
I think I must have a totally different accent to you ^_^" I guess I'm all for pronouncing names correctly for the language they have come from, if the pronunciation is known and it's at all possible for the speaker.
vote up1
I'm in IllinoisThe word "mare" for instance is pronounced "MAIR" or "MEHR". And every Karen or Sharon I've EVER known, from ANYWHERE in the US has pronounced their name as such. Actually A LOT of "-ar-" names are said like that is the US: Mary, Sarah, Taryn, Carys, Darin, Barrett, Jared, etc. etc. Obviously we're all working with different dialects and accents- not trying to force mine on you or anything, was just trying to point out how these names could sound to other people, including and most specifically the OPI'm all for pronouncing names correctly, I just think sometimes that is impossible when transferred between certain languages and so a near guess is the best you're going to do. I was just thinking earlier about how pretty Irena is ("ih-RAY-nah" ) but how it would never actually come out how I'd want it said because you have to say it with an Eastern European accent to make it sound right, and I'm not about to force a foreign accent on people... Teaching people a pronunciation is one thing, teaching them an accent is another

This message was edited 9/10/2014, 3:45 PM

vote up1
Okay :)
I'm not from the US and I've never been there so if you say a lot names with "-ar-" in them are pronounced mehr and mair I believe you. But I didn't know that before so the concept seemed weird to me.Sure, sometimes it's impossible to pass the correct pronunciations of names from one language to another and if Maren not being said "mah-ren" in American English is one of those cases then that's just how it is.
My own name is pronounced differently by people who only speak English and I have to be okay with that. I'm bilingual so I know what happens in one languages accent just can't happen in another.And if one of my favourite Romanian boys names has doubled-up in spelling with a variation of spelling of the American version of Maren then that's okay. Now I know that's what the story is!Sorry for all the explaining you had to do ^_^"
vote up1
No problem at all! The OP may very well not be from the US either. I think "MAH-rin" is certainly doable it just probably wouldn't be the first instinct for most Americans. And quite frankly, Maren/Marin is by no means a popular name here. I've only heard of/met 2 (one with each spelling) and they're both late 20s

This message was edited 9/10/2014, 10:49 PM

vote up1
Thanks, Ismene ::salutes::
vote up1