Noel
Shouldn't this be spelled "Noël"? I thought that was how Christmas is spelled in French. Also, does it change the pronouciation if spelled without the dots ¨over the e?Check Out Blinkyou.com for thousands of custom glitters and layouts
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In France, the trema (dots) usually indicate that two vowels are pronounced separately. In Francophone countries, Christmas is spelled Noël and pronounced "NO-ehl" I am not sure whether one or two-syllable pronunciation is favored by French men.
It is possible that both Noël and Noëlle would call themselves "NO-ehl." There are several names in French that are spelled and pronounced the same, but used for either gender. Ex: Celeste, Dominique.
"Les yeux sont aveugles. Il faut chercher avec le coeur." -- Le Petit Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupery

This message was edited 10/29/2006, 8:42 AM

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The French pronunciation is noh-EHL. The stressed syllable is always the last one.Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
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This site uses as the primary spelling for names that are commonly found in English speaking countries the form normally used in the United States and English-speaking Canada. You will almost never find any diacritical marks used in names in the United States. So the original French spelling of Noel would be Noël, but almost every man in the USA or English speaking Canada who has the name would not use the mark, and probably doesn't even realize that the mark is necessary in French. In French the name would be pronounced in two syllables. In the USA it is normally pronounced in one syllable, rhyming with "goal" or "hole".
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Gosh - really? It's two syllables for the blokes in South Africa, though the second contains a schwa ... and the girls named Noelle really thump out their second syllable. I'm pretty sure it's two for the guys in the UK as well, like Noel Coward.
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Noel Coward pronounces his name with one syllable (to rhyme with goal), as does Noel Edmunds (tv presenter).
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Thanks!
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