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I do not pronounce Merry and Mary in the same way. I remember being corrected on this as a child. I had an Aunt Mary and when I learned of the name merry I was told firmly of the different pronunciations. We lived in Illinois, BTW.

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I love the name Mary, but I also like Merry as a separate name. To me, they not only are pronounced differently but each has a very different feel. Mary is deep and quiet, while Merry is much less substantial and has a quick, breezy quality.

My friend's step-daughter is called Mary but they call her Merry. It started as an occasional nickname when she was about 4 years old because she is so smiley and happy. It stuck and now (aged 9) she introduces herself and writes her name as Merry. I think it's cute.

I do like Merry (both the way it looks and the meaning). I've considered it, however, when it comes down to it, I probably wouldn't use Merry because it does sound like Mary in my neck of the woods.

I pronounce them completely differently - I remember being amazed when I read somewhere, long ago, that Mary, Merry and marry could sound the same.

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I like Mary, and chose it as a mn for our first daughter rather than Maria (her grandmother's mn). But I prefer Marianne, I think.

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Merry, to me, is a female nn for Meredith. Not a substitute for anything, therefore, but pleasant enough. I knew a Meredith at school, but I don't remember her having a nn based on the name at all.

I don't pronounce them the same - roughly, MEH ree & MARE ee.
Mary is unusual here on anyone under 60, so it's not that boring to me. Merry isn't awful - nice meaning, and if I saw it a lot I'm sure I could get used to it - but right now it sounds like one of the Seven Dwarves. Or a hobbit.

I pronounce them the same. I never really thought about this, but I think I like Merry better. Like you said, it's visually morte interesting and it's more unique.

Most people around where I live pronounce them the same, but I've had years of speech therapy and therefore speak more with th accent of my therapist. I pronounce them differently even if similar.

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I think Mary is dated and boring,
However, I can't take Merry seriously. Too Merry Christmas or Merry & Pippin for me.

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I think of them as being pronounced slightly differently - Meh (e like bed) -ree versus Maa (a like mat) -ree. But when I say them aloud, my R is too strong and my tongue too lazy to make the a/e distinction, and they do both sound exactly the same. But I don't think of them as being the same name, unless they actually do become confused. Like if I'm introduced to a Merry and assume she's Mary until I see the name written. I guess they could be alternatives to each other if all you cared about was the sound, but I'm not in that position so I don't think of them that way.

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Like you I prefer the look of Merry. It looks less staid and dull, like Claire compared to Clare, or Sera compared to Sarah. But I like Mary, the name, better than Merry the name. If it's Meri as a nickname for something, that's even cooler. Merry could be a nickname too, and I think it's more appealing as a nickname for something, than as a word-name in itself.

I pronounce then totally differently. Meh-ree versus Mair-ee
Although I'm not generally a fan of modern/ish names I do like a few and Merry is one of them though would use Mary myself if I had to choose.
I know a middle-aged Merrilyn and the name strikes me as much prettier and even classier than Marilyn

I pronounce them differently. MEH-ree (Merry) and MARE-ee (Mary). I like Mary, and Merry is alright but not something I would use.

This message was edited 11/20/2014, 2:20 PM

Much prefer Mary
Merry is a word and although merry & Mary are very simular-specifically with sound, I think its just best to go with mary

They sound the same to me too, but I just don't care for it. It looks juvenile when paired next to the classic Mary. Like someone was having a baby near Christmas and was trying too hard to be cute.

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However, if the name was like Meredith with the nn spelled Merry, I'd be less opposed to it.

As far as sound: completely identical to me too
As far as looks: Merry is more interesting, but also a bit tacky
As far as relating the two: I could see Merry as an alternative to Mary more than I see it totally separate.
As far as preference: Mary is boring but less of a nuisance (especially for a little kid around Christmas time)

i too pronounce and hear them exactly the same, so for all practical purposes they're the same name. We hear names much more often than we read them, so to me Merry is as boring as Mary but with the added complication that its owner will always have to spell it.

They sound the same to me, too. Also, I'm reminded of hobbits when I hear it. If a person is going for Mary, I think they should just use Mary.

I like Merry as an entirely separate name from Mary. I probably wouldn't use it, but I wouldn't mind hearing that someone else had.

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I had a person in one of my classes growing up named Merrileigh, and that was just too much.

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Mary & Merry have a slight difference when I say them... at least when I am conscious of it. ;)

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I prefer Mary, but that is because of family associations.

I quite like it. I would pronounce it just like Mary. It feels a bit younger and less boring than Mary, however I think Mary would be easier to live with, not having to spell it out all the time wtc.

I like them both, but see them as totally different names.

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Mary is classic and biblical. It has many links and connotations that Merry just doesn't have.

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Merry is an adjective and therefore a word-name.

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I do say them the same, but I would not consider them alternatives to each other. I think that someone wishing to use the name Mary would think that Merry cheapens the integrity of the historical Mary.

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However, I think that someone who would like Merry, would not consider using Mary anyway.

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I find them both to be lovely names in their own right, but prefer Mary as a full name and Merry as a nickname for something like Meredith, Meriwether, Merrion, Merrit, Merril or Merla (etc).

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I also think of Lord of the Rings.

In English I pronounce them the same way, but in Estonian I would pronounce them differently (Merry: mer-REE; Mary: mah-REE). I like both names and don't prefer one above the other.

I don't pronounce Merry the same as Mary. I didn't know anyone did...

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I love Merry as a name and I don't really see at as an alternative to Mary. Those two names are so different to me!
Merry is both masculine and feminine to me because of Merry (Meriadoc) from The Lord of the Rings, and there was a girl in my class at highschool who was Merryn nn Merry.
There's also a Merryweather nn Merry in Over Sea, Under Stone.

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So, I really like it on a boy or girl. I like it as a nickname as something like Merryn or Merryweather, but it's actually kind of nice on its own too.
It'd make a good name for a Christmas baby ^_^

I far and away prefer Mary. Merry looks visually unbalanced to me and honestly the meaning of the word seems rather thin for use as a name. It's not bad though, and I mostly see them as totally separate.