New name

[th3-unicorn.livejournal.com]

Here's a name I'd never encountered before: Mavis.
It's a girl's name of French origin, meaning "song thrush", which is the song bird Turdus Philomelos. It's supposed to be pronounced MAY-viss, as rhyming with Davis, but my reaction would be to read it as MAV-iss, rhyming with Travis.

I really like it in the latter version, also because it makes me think of "Ma vis" which could roughly be translated into "my strength", borrowing "ma" from french (my) and "vis" from latin (strength)

WDYT?

Comments

[velkoria.livejournal.com]

my first instinct is to say 'meh' to it because it looks made up and well I dun enjoy the made up 'origin' because it's not real (makes me think of the whole Jaden having a meaning thing) though my first reaction would also be MAV-iss and I do like that a lot better.

[after-the-ashes.livejournal.com]

It's an old farm lady name to me... Like Gertrude or Doris.

[harinakshi.livejournal.com]

I've encountered Mavis before. Not on an actual person. But it's more of a South joke. Like, the redneck named Mavis, but as a boy name. And you have to say it like a redneck southern idiot...so I have a really hard time seeing it as a nice name, it's just horrible in my head.

[monkey-fruit.livejournal.com]

Pretty much this. =/

[arbus.livejournal.com]

i know a mavis, but its my friends bird. it rhymes with davis.

i quite like it, actually. i would never use it, it just isnt my style, but if i met a girl named mavis, i would find it refreshing and sweet.

[whispertown.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry but I've always hated the name Mavis

[samaside.livejournal.com]

Rhyming Mavis with Travis sounds ridiculous.

[th3-unicorn.livejournal.com]

why so?

[samaside.livejournal.com]

For one, because the name rhymes with Davis and anything else sounds made up.

[girlsteve.livejournal.com]

I don't know if this is true elsewhere, but Mavis was a pretty common name in the UK about fifty years ago. My grandmother has a friend named Mavis (rhyming with Davis) and I can imagine most of my friends grandmothers do too. So I have difficulty seperating it from the image of a sweet little old lady. It's in the same bracket as Ethel and Maude for me, even if the sound is more appealing. But I'd definately believe you if you told me it was part of the current trend for old fashioned names, and I could buy little Mavis going to school withlittle Evelyn and Ivy.

[th3-unicorn.livejournal.com]

Apparently it had a peak in popularity between 1910 and 1940, and then basically disappeared after that.

[krosp.livejournal.com]

I'm in Australia, and I know a couple of darling old ladies called Mavis. In their 80s.

It's pronounced MAY-vis.

[rowan-belle.livejournal.com]

I don't like it... it reminds me of an old lady.

[satunian.livejournal.com]

Not really a fan - one of those "old lady" type names imo, though I know a lot of people are into them these days they are just not my thing

[laminy.livejournal.com]

I don't dislike it. I don't really think too much about it. I had heard it before, so I knew how it was supposed to be pronounced. It's not that bad, I can see it being really cute and sweet on a little girl, but only when it's pronounced as may-viss. Mav-iss is just really ugly to me.

[quitmyscene.livejournal.com]

Aha! I was waiting to reply until I remembered where I had heard the name previously..



So many schools here in MA used her typing for kids in elementary / early middle school. I kind of like how it sounds, but dislike how it looks. On top of that, there's already a Maeve in the family and it's too similar to use.

[bluedano.livejournal.com]

This is EXACTLY what I thought of! My mom's a teacher and brought a copy of this home to teach us kids to type on our old Apple computer. :P

[rubie-dubidoux.livejournal.com]

That was my first thought as well. Definitely a no.

[holidaylights.livejournal.com]

This is exactly where my mind went!

[freezemyazaleas.livejournal.com]

That's what I thought of too! I loved that software.

[nandy-pandy.livejournal.com]

lol, I posted my comment before reading the others, but I TOTALLY learned how to type from this program when I was, like, 9. Haha!

[penguiny7.livejournal.com]

Really? I thought Mavis was fairly well-known. I've never met one, but I've definitely heard the name before. I think it's nice, but I much prefer Maeve. I kind of like Avis too.

[twitchywoman.livejournal.com]

It's my Grandma's middle name and her sister's name. They are Jeanette Mavis and Mavis Jeanette.

[sandtree.livejournal.com]

I've always disliked the name Mavis. I just hate the way it sounds, for some reason. Maybe because it rhymes with Davis? I'm not sure. I also dislike Maeve, probably because it's so close to Mavis.

[ifancylust.livejournal.com]

i've never heard it pronounced MAV-iss. i feel like everyone would call someone named "mavis" MAY-viss =/

[solitudete.livejournal.com]

Makes me think of Jay Leno's wife. I'm not a fan of the name, but I would never pronounce it MAV-iss.

[nandy-pandy.livejournal.com]

She taught me typing!

[pegasus2o5.livejournal.com]

I have two great-aunts (well, had, they've both passed) named Mavis, from different sides of the family. My family is from backwoods Alabama, by the way, and we have some doozy names in the family tree. They both pronounced it May-viss. I could never use it, as I associate it too strongly with old ladies (one of whom used to chase me around in her wheelchair, wielding a prosthetic leg like a sword, she was a character), but it might be cool to see it get revived.

I should totally make a post about the some of the goofy backwoods names among my great-aunts and uncles...