Ok I need your opinion to help a friend!

[briteflame3.livejournal.com]

I was talking to my girlfriend today who is expecting a little boy in May. Her husband and her are having a debate on the spelling of a name. She wants to name him Seamus but her husband is afraid that people will mispronounce it so he wants to spell it Shamus. Well to her she sees SHAMUs. What do you personally thing about the spellings? Would you know how to pronounce Seamus?

Comments

[washironfucketc.livejournal.com]

I see SHAMUs also. I really like Seamus the way it is :)

[briteflame3.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the input!

[stellarichards6.livejournal.com]

i know how to pronounce seamus. i think that it is a case of, either a person knows, or you go "its like how sean isnt "see-n" but "shaw-n" and call it a day. though personally i think that seamus has become mainstream enough that more people than not would know how to pronounce it.

i really dont like shamus.

[briteflame3.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the input!

[tokossel.livejournal.com]

shamus is a bit ridiculous-looking.

seamus is the traditional, irish spelling- if people don't get it right, then it's their problem...what more can you do it but spell it the 'real'/traditional way? i think most people would get it right though.

[briteflame3.livejournal.com]

Thanks for your input! My girlfriend will be happy to hear this.

[drunkontea.livejournal.com]

Seamus all the way. I wouldn't slaughter a name just because some people might spell it wrong. Besides, it's not too out there a name that people wouldn't know what is it.

[briteflame3.livejournal.com]

Thanks for your thoughts, I e-mailed my girlfriend the comments so far haha

[mountain-nest.livejournal.com]

LOL @ SHAMUs since I worked at SeaWorld! I definitely would know how to pronounce Seamus.

And I don't like how Shamus looks like Shame-us.

[briteflame3.livejournal.com]

haha which sea world do/did you work at?
Thanks for your input!

[mountain-nest.livejournal.com]

San Diego :]

[briteflame3.livejournal.com]

Ah nice, I haven't been to Sea World since I was a kid but they are opening a water park in orlando so I am sorta interested... for my son of course haha.

[after-the-ashes.livejournal.com]

I didn't know how to pronounce it until this community...

[briteflame3.livejournal.com]

Thanks for your input, neither did my husband. Since my family is heavily Irish I didn't find it fair for my opinion!

[tokyo.livejournal.com]

I don't see SHAMUs, but I do see "sham us", which I sounds pretty negative. :( I love Seamus just the way it is!

[briteflame3.livejournal.com]

Ok thanks for you input, yea SHAM US isn't too good either huh

[djador.livejournal.com]

I watch Canada AM so I know how to pronounce Seamus. I wouldn't change the spelling if I were there, it's just going to look misspelled to everyone who has heard of the name.

[djador.livejournal.com]

*them

[briteflame3.livejournal.com]

Very true!

[sandtree.livejournal.com]

Shamus definitely looks like 'SHAM-us'. I think most people would be able to pronounce Seamus (SHAY-mus), but if they can't, it would be pretty easy to explain, because people don't have a problem pronouncing Sean.

[briteflame3.livejournal.com]

Indeed!

[th3-unicorn.livejournal.com]

Wasn't there a whale named Shamu at SeaWorld?
Anyway, that's who Shamus reminds me of.

But interestingly enough, I'm gonna prove her husband's point right to some extent by saying I would have pronoucend Seamus as SEE-muss.

[xpaniic.livejournal.com]

I pronounced it SEE-muss too until I read farther down and realized it was like Sean.

[rowan-belle.livejournal.com]

I know how to pronounce it. Only because of Harry Potter though, lol. I'm sure it would be fine if they used the Seamus spelling. Like someone said, it's just like Sean. I think Shamus looks a bit silly.

[chucklincanuck.livejournal.com]

I have never seen that name before, so I would pronounce it See-mus, which sounds horrible!

[rubytitania.livejournal.com]

If someone doesn't know how to pronounce Seamus then that's their problem. It's no reason for the parents to dumb down the spelling - it would only make them look ignorant.

I assumed everyone would know how to pronounce Seamus, but I live in the UK so I'm guessing it's much less unusual here.

[sarahrose.livejournal.com]

I didn't know how to pronounce Seamus until this year when I finally read the Harry Potter series. Well, okay, I lie, I heard it in the Harry movies. A combination of the two, actually. I don't think I equated hearing "shay-miss" to Seamus until I read them.

ANYWAY! I think people will have trouble with it. I don't see SHAMU in Shamus though, but I think it's a weird spelling anyway. I don't know. I mean, I think that a lot of Irish names have to be reworked in America (the issue came up recently here before) because of the vast difference in letter pronunciation and the vast idiocy of people, but to me this seems like one that shouldn't be reworked too much.

[sarahness.livejournal.com]

I agree with the wife. Shamus looks like multiple killer whales.

[babykalina.livejournal.com]

As much as I love Sea World and Shamu.. Shamus is horrible. I think Shaymus would be better if you were going phonetically, but it's still terrible. Like others have said, I think Seamus has become more widespread and people won't have trouble with it like they're thinking. :)

[tryyingtoevolve.livejournal.com]

Definitely go with Seamus. The name was used in Harry Potter, and while people won't automatically think of that, it'll help with people being familiar with it. Plus, I think of it like I think of Sean, but with a different ending. I don't think it's really that hard.

I love the name. Shamus looks ridiculous.

[kitchen-poet.livejournal.com]

Spell it Seamus! I think *more* people would say it wrong if it was spelled Shamus. (I see SHAM-Us, sounds like SCAM US. Not good.)

[sageharper.livejournal.com]

My uni lectuer/mentor's name is Seamus; and I can't recall anyone mispronouncing it. Once you know you know.

Anyone who's familiar with the name would default to Seamus. And anyone else would need to be told the spelling/pronounciation either way. So it makes more sense to go tradition.

[bohemianvegan.livejournal.com]

Seamus is a character in Harry Potter so the name's well-known now.

[bohemianvegan.livejournal.com]

There's also the writer Seamus Heaney who wrote a new version of Beowulf.

[miss-tee.livejournal.com]

Seamus for sure!
I think people will know how to spell it and if not, just tell 'em once and then they'll know.

[shortbutfast.livejournal.com]

seamus it is, you don't want a whale for a kid. ;]

[thejoysofjess.livejournal.com]

I say spell it correctly. Worst case scenario, the kid has to correct a few people on the first day of school. I'd say most people can pronounce Seamus, especially since it's a name in Harry Potter now.

[blue-suspenders.livejournal.com]

I like it better as Seamus (I like the name too)
I know how to pronounce it because of Harry Potter. I think its becoming more mainstream though so most poeple will probably know how to say it.

[politicking.livejournal.com]

Seamus, definitely.

[raptorgirl.livejournal.com]

I think Shamus is an awful spelling. It does remind me of Shamu. Probably it wouldn't be too hard for people to grasp Seamus because of Harry Potter.

[soulsplinter8.livejournal.com]

I see "SHAM-uss" when I look at that spelling. I think Seamus is known widely enough that most people will recognize it and know the correct pronunciation. If not...well...there's no harm in just telling them, the way I see it. I LOVE the name Seamus, and I really like it spelled that way. :o)

[sloane-hd.livejournal.com]

I think everyone knows how Seamus is pronounced.
I don't even like it spelled any other way and I highly doubt that people will start to call him See-Mus.

[flightybynature.livejournal.com]

Seamus, fo sho! I totally know how to pronounce that....it's like Sean :D I don't think you would have that hard of a time with that one...and it's not pretentious or anything like Alyce or something :P

[aballard23.livejournal.com]

I would pronounce is Sea-mus. Lol. *shrug*

I just wouldn't know any better. Never did. o_O

[yellowsummers.livejournal.com]

I think that with the Harry Potter movies many more people will get it right.