Can we talk about variant spellings?
Head over to Reddit or pretty much any names discussion group to talk about spelling your baby’s name. Maybe you like Wrenlee instead of Wrenley or Rowen over Rowan.
Some will applaud your choice and add that they like Wrenlie and Rowyn, too.
But plenty of others will sigh. Why not stick with Wrenley and Rowan?
Others are quick to defend Isobel, noting that it’s an authentic Scottish spelling. But they’re not so forgiving of Aydin.
Table of Contents
- THE IDEA OF AN ORIGINAL SPELLING IS (USUALLY) A MYTH
- THE MOST POPULAR VERSION MIGHT NOT BE CLOSEST TO THE ORIGINAL
- HERITAGE CHOICES ARGUE FOR UNCONVENTIONAL SPELLINGS
- HONORING A LOVED ONE MIGHT MEAN CHOOSING AN UNCONVENTIONAL SPELLING
- DO VARIANT SPELLINGS REALLY DO ANY HARM?
- A VARIANT SPELLING MIGHT DO SOME GOOD
- SOMEONE MIGHT BELIEVE THE VARIANT SPELLING IS CORRECT
- A VARIANT SPELLING MIGHT MINIMIZE PRONUNCIATION ISSUES
- IT COULD ACCOMMODATE A FAMILY TRADITION
- THE VARIANT SPELLING HAS MEANING
Variant spellings are not the end of the world, and there are perfectly valid reasons to choose them when spelling your baby’s name.
Let’s talk about it.
THE IDEA OF AN ORIGINAL SPELLING IS (USUALLY) A MYTH
Which is the original spelling: Katherine or Catherine?
It’s a trick question. The name – like so many – comes from the Greek. The original wasn’t just written in a different language – it was written in a different alphabet. K and C are equally valid translations. If a name predates the English language – and a great many do – there may not be a definitive version.
In our spellcheck world, it is difficult to remember that widespread literacy is quite new, and standardized spellings are even more recent. In 1880, Catherine, Catharine, Cathrine, Katherine, Kathryn, Katharine, Kathrine, Katheryn and Kathryne all appeared in the US Top 1000. Go back far enough and you’ll find people who spelled their own name differently in different records.
Pre-widespread literacy, spelling didn’t matter. In the era of handwritten records, it wouldn’t have been possible to enforce a correct spelling. And now?
It’s a little late.
THE MOST POPULAR VERSION MIGHT NOT BE CLOSEST TO THE ORIGINAL
If it isn’t possible to pinpoint the original spelling, why not use the most common? It will save your child headaches, right?
In some cases, yes. But spellings evolve in real time.
Hailey ultimately became the most popular version of that surname name, a very popular choice for girls earlier in the 21st century. It outranked Haylee, Hayley, Haylie, Hailee, Hailie, and Haley. The original version? Probably Haley, an English surname name.
Likewise, Caitlin and Aidan are Gaelic heritage choices – but Kaitlyn and Aiden evolved to be the most popular choices.
If you’re uncertain about spelling, it’s always safe to choose the dominant spelling of a name – the most popular at that moment. But there’s never a guarantee that the most popular spelling won’t change over time.
HERITAGE CHOICES ARGUE FOR UNCONVENTIONAL SPELLINGS
Parents hoping to honor their Scottish roots might opt for Isobel over Isabelle.
If you’re naming your son after his grandfather Aleksandr, it’s worth considering whether you’re sacrificing too much by spelling his name Alexander instead.
Niamh and Fionn might cause some hassle when others try to pronounce them for the first time, but they’re clearly honoring Irish roots. If that matters, then these variant spellings offer a distinct advantage.
HONORING A LOVED ONE MIGHT MEAN CHOOSING AN UNCONVENTIONAL SPELLING
Maybe you’re naming your daughter after a great-grandmother called Kathryne. Keeping the spelling might feel right.
Other families preserve certain letter combinations in their name. Imagine an Ellyn named after family name Ellyson.
DO VARIANT SPELLINGS REALLY DO ANY HARM?
Sure, Madisyn and Madison are both very common names for teenagers and young women right about now. Madisyn has to spell her name every single time.
But the world is filled with people named Alison and Krista, Dillon and Stephen. They have survived spelling their names. That suggests that there’s plenty of space for Bryson and Brycen, Lucie and Lucey.
Can you go too far? Of course. Bhrysohn looks like pointless excess and Loosie is pretty out-there. But such examples are rare, and that’s not the level of variant spellings that most of us are considering.
Those subtle shifts, though? They might make a common name feel like it’s tailor-made for your child.
A VARIANT SPELLING MIGHT DO SOME GOOD
Maybe Schuyler is, technically, the correct spelling of the Dutch surname. But isn’t Skylar or Skyler so much more familiar? Simplifying the spelling helped make it wearable.
It’s not always that dramatic. Maybe you love the idea of Zofia, a subtle twist on Sophia that gives you the nickname Zoe and lets your daughter stand out from so many girls named Sophia, Sofia, and Sophie.
SOMEONE MIGHT BELIEVE THE VARIANT SPELLING IS CORRECT
That’s not meant to sound snobbish. If you first encounter Damien or Ezrah or Alijah or Evalyn, why wouldn’t that seem right? Gilmore Girls gave the world Lorelai. If the fast-talking mother-daughter duo is your inspo, maybe you’d never look up the name to discover Lorelei was once more common.
Also worth noting: dominant spellings change. So maybe you first encounter the name Lillie in a 19th century novel. Never mind that Lily is the most common form in use today. It’s Lillie that you’ve always wanted to name your daughter.
A VARIANT SPELLING MIGHT MINIMIZE PRONUNCIATION ISSUES
We all know a Caroline who prefers her name pronounced like Carolyn. Spelling it Carolyn might not help every time, but it probably does prompt some people to use the preferred pronunciation.
It’s worth noting that this doesn’t always work. Ask any Ondreya or Alivia, and odds are that they do sometimes have to correct others. But it’s not an unreasonable choice. After all, it’s the argument behind trading Aisling for Ashlyn.
IT COULD ACCOMMODATE A FAMILY TRADITION
Maybe you’re Mary and your partner is Glen. Somehow naming your daughter Bryn with just four letters looks better than Brynn – especially if Bryn joins Jack, too.
One of the more outlandish examples? Ginger-with-a-J, Jinger Duggar, the fourth daughter in the reality television family, and one of many J-named siblings.
Patterns are made to be broken, and yet … often those visual patterns or shared initials are surprisingly meaningful for parents and children.
THE VARIANT SPELLING HAS MEANING
Maybe the tenth and final reason is just a catch-all for the nine reasons given above. But it could be more, because when it comes to names, meaning is hard to explain.
Let’s you’re Jordyn. Naming your son Aydin-with-a-Y feels like a connection between you and your child.
Can variant spellings be a hassle? Sure. But for most of us, we choose them for good reasons, with thought and care. And that’s worth celebrating.
First published on October 28, 2009, this post was revised on February 27, 2014, and again on November 18, 2025.
It bothers me some that so-called kre8tif spellers don’t say much in any of the naming discussions on any of the websites I follow. Instead there’s a lot of preaching to the choir amongst dedicated name nerds, who also *seem* to be a rather homogeneous group (not that it’s easy to tell on the internet!). While I find the argument for practicality universally compelling, a lot of other reasons for going with an accepted spelling just seem to dance around the fact that unusual spellings are often associated (accurately or inaccurately) with being poor or non-white, and some people then start applying (pervasive, systemic, culturally transmitted) stereotypes to the parents/babies. I’d be lying if I said I never saw a name like “Kyleah” and didn’t automatically think: mom got pregnant as a teenager and never finished high school, and I’ll be surprised if her kids do much better. OUCH! What a horrible train of thought from just a name! But I bet I’m not alone! My point is not that Kyleah’s mom should know that other well-educated, middle-class people like myself will judge her daughter based on her name, or that we name nerds are a bunch of racists; instead my point is that we need to keep an eye on what assumptions we make when we see these unusual choices, and do some reflecting on why they actually bother us.
Thanks, Engloutie. It’s a nice point. I also suspect that many, many of the posters in name forums are young themselves – not parents, but teenagers imagining what their someday children MIGHT be called.
In my case, if I’d had a child at the age of 15 or so? There’s a very good chance I’d have named her Mystina.
Most of the people in those forums are young girls. They are just trying to find out what they like & who they are as ‘nameists”.Also, what I find ironic is how often name nerds say name is trendy or unacceptable or it won’t age well – yet, these names are in the top 100 & so the majority of the population who are ADULTS disagree- they’re using them!Many times, it’s the adults as well, who are changing the names in terms of spelling. I think the teenage theory only goes so far. Much depends on your environment & what you are exposed to
This is interesting. We chose a variant spelling for our youngest son and I don’t think it will adversely affect him (his name is Calum Alasdhair.) My husband disliked the extra l in “Callum” and I admit that now that he is named, the extra L looks wrong to me as well. Alasdhair was for a Scottish friend and obviously we weren’t going to change the spelling even if it isn’t as common as Alistair.
We also do not live in the UK where these names are much more popular–I’m pretty sure that Callum or Calum haven’t even made the top 1000 here in the US. The biggest problem is pronunciation but we already have an Isla so we deal with that on a daily basis anyways. Heck, my family (southern in heritage) cannot even pronounce my oldest son’s name correctly (Liam.) They say LY-am.
That is my preferred spelling of Calum by FAR. The simpler the better.
I have an Isla too and ‘suffer’ for dropping the extra T in the second part of her first name, Scarlet, and also an N in my son’s name Conor, frequently. Still, wouldn’t have it any other way. Conor is the traditional way to anglicise Conchobar in Ireland and that’s just fine with me, “You spelt it wrong” naysayers can jump.
You’re right, Ashley – in the US, you’d have to spell Callum anyhow …
When we decided to name our daughter after my husband’s mother we also decided to retain the way her name was spelt, Roseanna instead of Rosanna. I realise that she’ll go through her life having to spell it out for people (or say, “like ‘rose’ and ‘anna’ smushed together”), but to my husband that way is the right way. Personally, I think I prefer the way Roseanna looks to Rosanna, although I don’t know if I would have gone with a variant spelling were it not for the reasons we chose the name in the first place.
I agree that phonetic spellings and authentic foreign variants are just not comparable. I have no issues with Isobel or Izabela, Anne or Ann, Catherine or Katherine, it is completely different when parents start spelling them out phonetically because they think it looks cute. Its sad that Makayla is more popular than the beautiful Michaela. Alivia just does not look right to me.
I’m a Katherine, and I had a lady write down my name as Kathyreinne once. I corrected her, and she told me her daughter was Kathyreinne, and she thought it just looked so pretty and sophisticated, and that Katherine looked so plain and boring. Blah!
I still want to hear a real reason for the -xs combo so popular in Jaxsyn/Jaxson. What is the point of that s?
I’m a Katheryn. I feel your pain.
Phonetic spellings annoy the crap out of me. Jaxon? Makayla? Yuck. Authentic foreign variants are another story. I like the name Anja, but understand that here in the US that might give some less aware people a hard time. However, Anya looks off to me. That would be a case in which I might go with the less common, stranger looking, yet authentic spelling. I think each name presents a separate problem and solution. My mother’s name is Stacey. We both agree that this is the right way to spell it. When I come across a Stacy I cringe, and Stacie and Staci make me want to cry. Which is right? She often has to spell her name for people. It’s a nuisance. the same goes for my nickname. Spelled one way, it’s a boy’s name. Spelled another, it’s a girl’s name. But many girls spell it differently. I faor the KISS rule and keep it simple – which is not the same as phonetic.
Ah, and see … I love Anya and find Anja extreme! Interesting about your Stacey/Stacy/Stacie/Staci experience. With the exception of Naomi, I have a particular dislike of names that end in -i. As does my sister, poor thing, who wears the name Teri.
Out of curiousity, how do you feel about Sonya vs. Sonja? Personally, I lean towards Sonya, just because there’s this angry, bitter old lady at work named Sonja who just ruined the name for me.
I also work with an Ila, which drives me nuts. I always write her name Isla first, then have to correct it.
I love the Ila spelling although with the surge in Isla awareness now it has the potential to be very confusing. My great great grandparents used Illa on my great grandmother (said EYE la, yes, I know!) as they didn’t have a clue how to spell it. I suppose that happened a lot back then. Both Ila and Isla along with many variations pop up during the 19th century.
I considered Ila for my daughter (more like her great great grandmother’s name) and then Ile (the Gaelic name for Islay) but copped out and stuck with safer Isla.
Loads of Ilas in the cemetery here although you have to wonder how many went by EYE la. Some may well have been EE la.
I have several family members named Sonja, so for me this has always been the traditional spelling. To me it feels slightly ethnic, and reminds me of that side of my family’s heritage.
Sonya doesn’t bother me, but Sonia…Urgh!
I was going to say the same thing, especially about Makayla. My BFF’s daughter is a Makayla, and often she’ll get gifts and cards for “Michaela”, at which point this 8 year old child will either breakout in a hurricane fit of epic proportions, or make fun of the person who spelled her name wrong. I always want to correct her, and let her know that she’s the one spelling her name wrong!
I think there is a huge difference between using a researched, well thought out variant spelling and uniquing up a spelling for giggles. I think names like Isobel, Emilia, Zofia, etc. are all fine, but I just don’t understand the point of names like Jaxen or Cyndi. In my mind, they aren’t commonly accepted variations, and they probably aren’t honoring a family member. They’re just to be ‘unique’, and it drives me insane.
Word.
A pet peeve, the ubiquitous Jorja/Jorjah for Georgia here in NZ and in Australia. There’s NOTHING redeeming or flattering about it. I can’t tell you how disheartening it is to see in many local forums, overwhelming support for Jorja over Georgia ’cause it’s “cooL” and “unique”.
And you won’t stop me from saying this HOR hah either.
I can’t lie, the first time I saw Jorjah Fox, I assumed her name was said “HOR-hah”, like Jorge.
My son is James, and when I was pregnant, one of the other ladies at the OB’s office asked me how I was going to spell it. I just gave her a o_0 face. How the heck else are you supposed to spell James? Then again, she had it down to Hart or Jadon for her son, and she hadn’t decided how to spell Jadon yet.
You’re right – but I once heard of an Alicyn named after an Alfred (or Albert?) and Cynthia – her grandparents, maybe? I’m forgetting the exact details. That one always charmed me …
I can get behind the theory of Alicyn, but it’s almost a Nevaeh problem. If your name, or the spelling of your name, has a permanent asterisk of “it’s spelled this way for my grandparents Alfred and Cynthia”, you become “Alicyn spelled this way for my grandparents Alfred and Cynthia”, not “Alison”. I think this is the perfect sort of name for the middle name. It’s a super out-there spelling, but you don’t have to explain the whole reason every time because it’s in the middle.
My niece is Rebekah, which I find miles nicer than Rebecca. 🙂
I’ve said this before, but at this point I plan on using Isobel as a middle name if I’m pregnant with a girl. I’ve always favored that spelling, and when I saw it in a family tree book, it sealed the deal. I don’t think I would be attracted to the name if it were Isabelle or even Isabel. A less common spelling doesn’t give me pause in the middle name spot.
I grew up with this problem – my name is Rebekah, but I have always ALWAYS had to spell it out for people. My version is actually closer to the Hebrew version (and used more frequently in English Biblical translations), but has obviously become the less popular version. It’s something I live with now, but I can tell you it IS tiring to constantly spell out your name for everyone, especially when they try to “correct” it for you. Oi. And now I’ve gone and married a guy with a last name that has several variations on spelling. What was I thinking? haha 🙂
So that’s just my two cents. Guess it just comes down to the fact that you can’t really win. Ever. haha.
Actually Damien is a “legit” variation; it’s the French form as seen at this link: https://www.behindthename.com/name/damien
With a lot of the names that we are more familiar with the -an ending forms the -en forms are the French variations (e.g. Adrian/Adrian, Lucian/Lucien*, Sebastian/Sebastien). *Lucian/Lucien was a name I suggested for Name of the Day, and it’s coming up next week.
I meant Adrian/Adrien for that one (not the -an twice). My mistake!
You’re right, of course, Kelly! I’m a huge fan of Julien, despite the fact that it would look misspelled to many, and Julian is far, far, far more common.
I’ve always liked Isobel best, and at one point was guilty of loving the name Sofija. I feel like there is a major difference between Kr8tyv spelling and going with an international varient of a name.
I think this article is right on point. Thank You!