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Dimity and Dymphna
Thoughts?
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I like Dymphna because of the medieval Irish princess saint. She's the patron saint of the mental ill, runaways, and victims of incest. When her mother died, her much-aggrieved father started to look for a new wife who looked like her. When none could be found, he fell in love with his daughter. She fled but was caught and martyred by her father. All-in-all an interesting story, and though it doesn't seem like she does very much, for a girl in the Middle Ages to stand up to her father took a lot of courage, especially in a sexually-charged situation. I'd pick Dymphna as a confirmation name or use it as a middle name, but probably not a first name.Dimity is trying to be a nice name, like Dmitri or Verity, but it just isn't working out for her.
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Sorry, but I really dislike both. Dimity sounds unintelligent and meek--I'm sure it's the "dim" that does it--and Dymphna just sounds like a dim nymph.
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Old-fashioned fabric is a nice image, but the Dim part is just unignorable. Dimwitty!
And Dymphna does sound a bit glandular. Damhnait is kind of nice though.
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I don't know how to pronounce Dymphna. If I say it the way it looks it sounds like a mumps-type condition that makes your neck glands swell up. I know it's an Irish name and those are pronounced very differently than they look, but if it's pronounced Deena or Dinah, I say just use those names and not try to impress people with the authentic Irishness .Dimity is icky. It makes me think of a simpering, scatterbrained little girl in a pinafore dress and fat pigtails and buck teeth. Also it sounds very similar to dimwitted.
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It's Anglicized.And I love your reasoning. My SIL wanted to name her daughter after a saint, her husband wanted to use an Irish name. We suggested Dymphna because it's the patron saint of lunatics AND an Irish name - we were, of course, not serious. :-D
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My first thought is that Dimity looks pretty, and it has a kind of 19th century vibe to it. But I'm not keen on it having the word "dim" in it. "Nice but dim" is an expression used here occasonally (after a Harry Enfield character Tim Nice But Dim) and it makes me think of that.Dymphna looks rather awkward. Both could work in a story though, but not sure about real life.
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Dimity is not terrible. But I wonder if people would associate it with the word "dim". I don't know. It's odd, but I maintain that it's not awful.Dymphna, on the other hand, is awful! It has me oscillating between "harumph" and "lymphoma" and sounds really frumpy. It looks ridiculous to me!

This message was edited 4/16/2012, 12:09 PM

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Dimity was used as a character in some of the "Miss Read" books;she (Dimity) was a small, meek-ish person, the name sort of implies it.I really wouldn't call a child that.Though one could have twins, Dimity and Lace, or Lacey. Dymphna, no.Agree with Billina, it's a lumpish,awkward name.
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I don't like them at all. Dimity has "dim" in it, and Dymphna sounds like a dumpy, slow-witted girl everyone makes fun of. I think they both sound silly.
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I agree that they both sound silly. Dimity is too close to dimwit and Dymphna reminds me of lymph node.
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