True Story. A few years ago I went to New York to see some family and was being introduced to the North American side of the clan, all the various younger cousins, and kin folks. One particularly pubescent girl gave me a winning smile and said, “Hi, my name is Shelivya.” I thought at the moment my mind as well as my hearing were playing tricks on me, so I asked her to repeat. Sure enough, it was not faulty auditory wiring. Her name really was pronounced ‘She-live-yah’. Me being the joker that I am remarked, “Where she live again? Over deh so?” For some reason, they never found my wisecrack funny.
But, that is the challenge with names. If they are not considered ‘normal’, easy to spell, easier to pronounce, or doesn’t roll off the tongue, someone is going to have an issue and may run the risk of offending not only the said named individual, but their parents and entire clan. So why do some people go out of their way to conjure up names that raise eye brows, leave mouths agape, or are just plain silly when the English translation is revealed? BUZZZ Magazine sought to examine the rhyme and reason behind choosing a baby’s name and the logic, or lack thereof, in some cases.