If you have a daughter named Isabella/Isobel

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Belly is a better name than Isabella or Bella or Izzy.

... said no one, ever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have a third-grade Isabella.

We are a bilingual dual-citizenship Hispanic family. She goes by “Bella-Bella” or the version discussed below at home. Her school is also about 1/3 made up of dual citizenship Latin American English/spanish-speaking students.

In Spanish it is pronounced "ee-sah-BEH-lah”.

“ee-sah” is a common short form in Latin America. That has stuck with her at school to the point that even the high schoolers know her as “ee-sah”. She isn’t particularly fond of it, but she’s accepted it.

Every time there’s a Latino name I always have to PRONOUNCE it in Spanish. Americans sound like Iz-ah-bella . Spanish speakers pronounce Zs to sound like S. The I sound like a long E. bEH sounds like BAY.

[Anonymous]

My 9yo is Isabelle, she goes by Belle. I don't think she'd like Belly.

[Anonymous]

I imagined she picked it as a name that’s meant to convey that east coast feeling of obscene but “that’s how friends and family call me” monikers like Dickie or P*ssy, old chap.

[Anonymous]

There was a post on here wanting to name their kid belly. Not isobella just… belly. Yuck

[Anonymous]

I personally only know Isas (ee-sahs, or Lisa without the L), from Spanish or Latin backgrounds or not, and I find Bella really grating.

I think it’s because every 20 something guy I knew before I was married had a lab named Bella. So when I hear a HS-aged girl named that, I think “chubby black lab who knows clever party tricks”. One of them could open the beer fridge!

[Anonymous]

Is this a good time to mention that naming your kid Isabella/Gianna/Luca/any foreign name when you are not from that culture is cringey?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have a third-grade Isabella.

We are a bilingual dual-citizenship Hispanic family. She goes by “Bella-Bella” or the version discussed below at home. Her school is also about 1/3 made up of dual citizenship Latin American English/spanish-speaking students.

In Spanish it is pronounced "ee-sah-BEH-lah”.

“ee-sah” is a common short form in Latin America. That has stuck with her at school to the point that even the high schoolers know her as “ee-sah”. She isn’t particularly fond of it, but she’s accepted it.

Isa is my favorite nickname for these names. I also tend to think it travels well -- ee-sah is an easy pronunciation in almost any language. Whereas Belly even sounds weird in English/Spanish/Italian, the languages most associated with Isabella/Isobel.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I personally only know Isas (ee-sahs, or Lisa without the L), from Spanish or Latin backgrounds or not, and I find Bella really grating.

I think it’s because every 20 something guy I knew before I was married had a lab named Bella. So when I hear a HS-aged girl named that, I think “chubby black lab who knows clever party tricks”. One of them could open the beer fridge!

I dislike both Belle and Bella as names or nicknames because they sound to me like if you called a child "Pretty" in English. Like it's too on the nose. Bella, in particular, is such a commonly used word in Italian, to express everything from "looks delicious" to "perfect, I'll be there" to "wow, gorgeous" that the idea of using it as a name is just bizarre to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is this a good time to mention that naming your kid Isabella/Gianna/Luca/any foreign name when you are not from that culture is cringey?

What are the American names?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is this a good time to mention that naming your kid Isabella/Gianna/Luca/any foreign name when you are not from that culture is cringey?

Depends on the name. We live in a migratory world. Names travel. Every name you think of as "American" or belonging to the English-speaking world is likely derived from another place and language. Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, old French, German, or English.

Of the names you've mentioned, Isabella has made the leap to English speakers and will no longer make people assume you're Italian. Luca is borderline -- you'd be fine in cities but it will sound foreign in some parts of the US. Gianna looks and sounds Italian to Americans, if you use it, people will probably think it's weird you don't have Italian heritage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is this a good time to mention that naming your kid Isabella/Gianna/Luca/any foreign name when you are not from that culture is cringey?

What culture do you think Isabella comes from? If you look, historically, it's used all over the world: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isabella_(given_name)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is this a good time to mention that naming your kid Isabella/Gianna/Luca/any foreign name when you are not from that culture is cringey?

Depends on the name. We live in a migratory world. Names travel. Every name you think of as "American" or belonging to the English-speaking world is likely derived from another place and language. Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, old French, German, or English.

Of the names you've mentioned, Isabella has made the leap to English speakers and will no longer make people assume you're Italian. Luca is borderline -- you'd be fine in cities but it will sound foreign in some parts of the US. Gianna looks and sounds Italian to Americans, if you use it, people will probably think it's weird you don't have Italian heritage.

Agreed I don't think of Isabelle/a as that ethnic anymore. All "american" names originated somewhere else (or are derived from something that did)

[Anonymous]

Belly is a No.

[Anonymous]

It’s bad if they are overweight.