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Help[Opinions] Leda / Letha
I'm reading a really beautiful book on Greek and Roman myth, and I was really struck by the name Leda. I instinctively read Leda as LAY-də rather than LEE-də, but, in any case, according to Caprice in the comments section for the name, 'leda' means "boredom" in Swedish, which is certainly off-putting for me as I hope to learn the language one day. Additionally, another user states that the correct Greek pronunciation of Leda is LEE-thə, which lead me to consider Letha. Although, does LEE-thə sound too much like Lisa with a speech impediment? Ahh!
Anyway, rambling aside, what do you think of Leda, pronounced as LAY-də? How about Letha (LEE-thə)?
Much obliged!
Ottilie
http://www.behindthename.com/pnl/116467
Anyway, rambling aside, what do you think of Leda, pronounced as LAY-də? How about Letha (LEE-thə)?
Much obliged!
http://www.behindthename.com/pnl/116467
Archived Thread - replies disabled
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Replies
Honestly, I quite like Leda, but only pronounced LEE-də. The spelling is simple and sweet and the sound is both appealing and easy for young and old to say.
I don't like LAY-də very much, as it sounds like a Bostonite saying "later"... and I can't get a picture of Ben Afleck from Good Will Hunting out of my head.
Letha is ok. The 'th' sound is better suited for me in boys names honestly. It brings a softness to them. For girls, it brings a datedness imo.
I don't like LAY-də very much, as it sounds like a Bostonite saying "later"... and I can't get a picture of Ben Afleck from Good Will Hunting out of my head.
Letha is ok. The 'th' sound is better suited for me in boys names honestly. It brings a softness to them. For girls, it brings a datedness imo.
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Yeah, I'm going with LEE-də now. I've never seen Good Will Hunting, haha.
Thank you!
Thank you!
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I would not have thought to pronounce Leda as LAY-da. It's not completely illogical, it just wouldn't have crossed my mind, so I imagine it might require some teaching to make that happen.
Leda is a way better look than Letha for me, because I just see 'lethal' when I look at Letha.
I don't like LAY-da because, even if it does have history, it just blends in with all the "ay" sounding names around. I don't want to demote it, but it feels like another one in the sea of Jada, Kayla, Taylor, Aidan, Hayden, Braden, Layla, Haylie, etc. I'm tired of that "ay" sound.
Leda is a way better look than Letha for me, because I just see 'lethal' when I look at Letha.
I don't like LAY-da because, even if it does have history, it just blends in with all the "ay" sounding names around. I don't want to demote it, but it feels like another one in the sea of Jada, Kayla, Taylor, Aidan, Hayden, Braden, Layla, Haylie, etc. I'm tired of that "ay" sound.
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The raped-by-a-swan thing is... off-putting? Nope, doesn't really cover it. And that's my only association with the name, so no, don't fancy it with any pronunciation. (And I expect you'd need an accent to get 'lay', as most English speakers would probably rhyme it with Freda)
Re Letha: Lisa-with-a-speech-impediment made me grin. Tis true though.
Do you like Lída?
Re Letha: Lisa-with-a-speech-impediment made me grin. Tis true though.
Do you like Lída?
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I'm not sure I can wrap my mind around Leda pronounced LAY-də; I've only ever heard it pronounced LEE-də and it seems to be carved quite solidly into my mind like that. And I do like the sound of it (at least pronounced LEE-də), but the name is entirely tied to the character in my mind.
LEE-thə does sound like Lisa with a lisp, but possibly only because you pointed it out.
LEE-thə does sound like Lisa with a lisp, but possibly only because you pointed it out.
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I read Leda as LEH-də not LAY-də. I think it's a pretty name, although to me it sounds a bit outdated.
My sister used to have a teacher with this name, that's the only person with this name I've heard of.
Letha, as others remarked, looks too much like lethal to me.
My sister used to have a teacher with this name, that's the only person with this name I've heard of.
Letha, as others remarked, looks too much like lethal to me.
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Oh, interesting! LEH-də could also be quite endearing. And, it's funny, but it never even occurred to me how similar Letha is to "lethal".
Thank you!
Thank you!
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Leda would only be pronounced with a "th" in Modern Greek, and it would be a voiced "th" (as in "those," "smooth," etc.). In Ancient Greek, the "d" would be pronounced like an English "d."
I adore Leda, but only if it's pronounced "LEE-ə." Letha is too close to "lethal" for me to appreciate it fully.
I adore Leda, but only if it's pronounced "LEE-ə." Letha is too close to "lethal" for me to appreciate it fully.
This message was edited 7/28/2015, 6:06 PM
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Thank you for the clarification! I did wonder if there was a difference in this instance between Ancient and Modern Greek, as there often is, but I was a smidge too tired to research it.
LEE-də is growing on me a tad, though I'm trying to decide whether it really matters that it sounds almost identical to "leader" in my accent.
LEE-də is growing on me a tad, though I'm trying to decide whether it really matters that it sounds almost identical to "leader" in my accent.
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I like Leda, but no one would pronounce it LEDH-uh (with the a voiced th), as you described.
Sorry, posted this in wrong place.
Sorry, posted this in wrong place.
This message was edited 7/28/2015, 8:12 PM
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δ in Modern Greek is pronounced like a voiced "th" in English.
ETA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_Greek_phonology#Consonants
ETA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_Greek_phonology#Consonants
This message was edited 7/28/2015, 9:01 PM
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I know about the "dh" consonant. Is the original poster in Greece?
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Whoa...I think you've imagined me as scrappier than I intended.
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Yep, I'm aware, I'm reading a book on it... Although, to be fair, and according to my book, she consented, but she didn't know she was consenting to Zeus. da Vinci showed her children (Pollux and Helen, and Castor and Clytemnestra) as hatching from swan eggs *shrugs*
Thanks!
Thanks!
This message was edited 7/28/2015, 5:43 PM
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Wikipedia claims he "seduced" her, but that's really not the way I learned it in school (not even close). I think it really depends on the version of the story, and people back in those times/cultures really didn't have the same understanding of consent we do today.
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I'm going to discuss this with a friend who is much more educated on the matter than I, but I'm wondering if "raped" should be taken as literally and in the way a modern audience, such as all of us, takes it.
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"Raped" did often mean something more like "carried off" back in the day, but when I say she was raped in the version of the story I read, it wasn't that the text included that word; it was the details of what was happening, how it was described, and the fact that she was clearly trying to resist him while he continued to persist (biting at the back of her neck with his bill, pawing at her thighs with his feet, beating at her with his wings), and the sense was that even in the form of a swan he still had strength to overpower her.
This was over ten years ago that I was in university, so I might not remember it all 100% correctly, but I do not believe my opinion could ever change on this particular telling of the story. Other versions of course could paint the encounter quite differently, and since the myths were often changed drastically from one telling to the next, that's also valid.
This was over ten years ago that I was in university, so I might not remember it all 100% correctly, but I do not believe my opinion could ever change on this particular telling of the story. Other versions of course could paint the encounter quite differently, and since the myths were often changed drastically from one telling to the next, that's also valid.
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Ah, thank you for the information on this! I really appreciate it :)
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Talitha is a name I've never been able to make my mind up on!
Thank you!
Thank you!
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