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Help[Opinions] Coyote
I saw a coyote today and was reminded of how fun to say it is (I pronounce it ky-oh-tee). It got me thinking of animal baby names, like Fox and Bear. There were 9 Coyote's born in 2022.
It's also a slang word for smuggling migrants/human trafficking though. I wonder it that's the reason it hasn't been picked up by the trendier crowd.
Still fun to say.
It's also a slang word for smuggling migrants/human trafficking though. I wonder it that's the reason it hasn't been picked up by the trendier crowd.
Still fun to say.
Replies
Actually, I have met a Coyote! (I always wondered why he was named that.)
He pronounced it the same way, with 3 syllables. No nickname. It fit him well, but I don't think I would like it for anyone else. We have a lot of coyotes (the animal) where I live, so it's common for pets to be killed by them, unfortunately... apparently it happened to his pet. As interesting as the name is, I wouldn't want to be named it if I have that association.
He pronounced it the same way, with 3 syllables. No nickname. It fit him well, but I don't think I would like it for anyone else. We have a lot of coyotes (the animal) where I live, so it's common for pets to be killed by them, unfortunately... apparently it happened to his pet. As interesting as the name is, I wouldn't want to be named it if I have that association.
This message was edited 2/16/2024, 6:37 PM
The only one I know of is Coyote Peterson.
It reminds me of Canyon as well as other animal names like Fox and Bear.
I think it could catch on as a name if you ignore the smuggling thing. I don't think the trickster feel would prevent it from catching on, since Raven is also a trickster and that's a popular name.
Coyotes themselves are also getting more popular, along with other animals that used to be "uncool" because they're good at exploiting anthropogenic environments.
Coy is a great nickname too. (If you want a visual nickname then Coy, for a more intuitive sound nickname maybe Cy pronounced like Kai?)
The thing that would stop me is the pronunciation differences. I say the animal with 2 syllables but as a name it seems like it should have 3, but I wouldn't want to use the 3-syllable pronunciation for my kid's name since that's not how I'd normally say it.
Some other mammal name ideas:
Hare (not as a sibling to Fox or Coyote though :P)
Jackal (and if you think it's cheesy you can go by Jack)
Marten
Wolf
Castor (as in beaver, maybe usable because of Castor & Pollux?)
Hart
Pika
Tiger
Wapiti
Oryx
Hyrax?
Tenrec?
Ferret (?? rhymes with Garrett and Barrett, but is also a verb)
Eland
Sable
Nyala
Lynx
Koala
It reminds me of Canyon as well as other animal names like Fox and Bear.
I think it could catch on as a name if you ignore the smuggling thing. I don't think the trickster feel would prevent it from catching on, since Raven is also a trickster and that's a popular name.
Coyotes themselves are also getting more popular, along with other animals that used to be "uncool" because they're good at exploiting anthropogenic environments.
Coy is a great nickname too. (If you want a visual nickname then Coy, for a more intuitive sound nickname maybe Cy pronounced like Kai?)
The thing that would stop me is the pronunciation differences. I say the animal with 2 syllables but as a name it seems like it should have 3, but I wouldn't want to use the 3-syllable pronunciation for my kid's name since that's not how I'd normally say it.
Some other mammal name ideas:
Hare (not as a sibling to Fox or Coyote though :P)
Jackal (and if you think it's cheesy you can go by Jack)
Marten
Wolf
Castor (as in beaver, maybe usable because of Castor & Pollux?)
Hart
Pika
Tiger
Wapiti
Oryx
Hyrax?
Tenrec?
Ferret (?? rhymes with Garrett and Barrett, but is also a verb)
Eland
Sable
Nyala
Lynx
Koala
This message was edited 2/14/2024, 8:48 PM
Coyotes are considered pests where I live, so I can’t imagine it getting popular. It does sound like a prime celebrity baby name though.
Yeah Coyote actually has pleasant sounds. I wasn’t aware of the slang meaning, that’s unfortunate. I think it’s more fun as a name than Bear and Fox - they feel even pedestrian beside it. The Wile E. Coyote reference didn’t occur to me at all until I saw RoxStar’s reply. People name their kids Wiley (ew)…Coyote at least has some spunk.
The immigrant-smuggling, the Wile E. Coyote, the general reputation of coyotes as being at best, tricksters (who usually get their comeuppance) and at worse as vermin. I think that's why it never really caught on as a name.
Really, names like Fox and Bear didn't really "catch on" in a very meaningful sense either except with the painfully hip-celebrity types.
FYI, there are now coyotes in Delaware. The only state without them is of course Hawaii. There are now more of them in the US than there were in colonial times, because they are extremely adaptable and don't care much about their surroundings or the proximity of people. They got started in neighboring Maryland by being deliberately introduced to help control rodents, but they preferred to kill chickens and pets and were way more trouble than they were worth.
Really, names like Fox and Bear didn't really "catch on" in a very meaningful sense either except with the painfully hip-celebrity types.
FYI, there are now coyotes in Delaware. The only state without them is of course Hawaii. There are now more of them in the US than there were in colonial times, because they are extremely adaptable and don't care much about their surroundings or the proximity of people. They got started in neighboring Maryland by being deliberately introduced to help control rodents, but they preferred to kill chickens and pets and were way more trouble than they were worth.
Yes, I heard they were brought over by a farmer to keep the birds away or something like that.
I was turning into my work parking lot, which is in a strip of businesses off a busy road with not so much as a tree in sight, and one ran right in front of my car and into the lot!
As many as there are, I haven't seen one in a long time. Just moved back to suburban-rural Illinois from an urban area of Texas.
I think if not for the connection to smuggling there'd be at least more of an interest personally, not for use but for playing around with.
I was turning into my work parking lot, which is in a strip of businesses off a busy road with not so much as a tree in sight, and one ran right in front of my car and into the lot!
As many as there are, I haven't seen one in a long time. Just moved back to suburban-rural Illinois from an urban area of Texas.
I think if not for the connection to smuggling there'd be at least more of an interest personally, not for use but for playing around with.
There's been several sightings of one, or maybe it's more than one coyote in my mother's development. One crossed the road in front of my car too.
Tell you what, the ones I've seen aren't nearly as pretty as foxes. We have some gray foxes living under the shed. Every now and then I'll see one, and they are gorgeous, though of course the red ones are the prettiest.
Tell you what, the ones I've seen aren't nearly as pretty as foxes. We have some gray foxes living under the shed. Every now and then I'll see one, and they are gorgeous, though of course the red ones are the prettiest.
I've seen red foxes a couple times as a kid! :) They really are lovely. I haven't seen a gray! You'll have to snap some pictures to the lounge
Oh wow I didn't know about the slang.... That's dreadful.
Coyote IS fun. The different ways of saying it just add to the charm. It's so appropriate for a trickster like the coyote. I actually say it both ways, I'm very inconsistent. But I think I might say it with 3 syllables slightly more often. Like when I think of that cartoon coyote, Wile E. Coyote, his name has the long pronunciation. Do some people call him "Wiley Ky-ote"?? That's fascinating.
Coyote IS fun. The different ways of saying it just add to the charm. It's so appropriate for a trickster like the coyote. I actually say it both ways, I'm very inconsistent. But I think I might say it with 3 syllables slightly more often. Like when I think of that cartoon coyote, Wile E. Coyote, his name has the long pronunciation. Do some people call him "Wiley Ky-ote"?? That's fascinating.
With "Wile E. Coyote" it has to be 3 syllables, but when I'm talking about the animal I always use 2 syllables.
Frankie and Grace
There's a character named Coyote, It's very much a joke in the show. The parents were stereotypical 1970 hippies.
I would not be able to take a Coyote seriously, unless it was Native American.
There's a character named Coyote, It's very much a joke in the show. The parents were stereotypical 1970 hippies.
I would not be able to take a Coyote seriously, unless it was Native American.
I would think in reference to the character they would use the 3 syllable pronunciation but who knows!
I did fall into a rabbit hole sometime ago trying to answer the question "how is it supposed to be pronounced?" but the answer was that there isn't one.
I found a map of the US and saw it's pretty split with most Americans using 3 syllables. All along the coasts and through the East and most of the midwest was 3. Central US 2. Texas and surrounding states a mixed bag. I started to wonder how English-speaking Europeans would pronounce it until I remembered there are no coyotes in Europe (though they do have jackals).
Seems like it's original etymology was from Nahuatl coyotl, pronounced most similar to the 2 syllable pronunciation of the word, but it was then adapted into Mexican Spanish sounding something along the lines of kai-oh-teh.
But yes, I hate the slang. :(
I did fall into a rabbit hole sometime ago trying to answer the question "how is it supposed to be pronounced?" but the answer was that there isn't one.
I found a map of the US and saw it's pretty split with most Americans using 3 syllables. All along the coasts and through the East and most of the midwest was 3. Central US 2. Texas and surrounding states a mixed bag. I started to wonder how English-speaking Europeans would pronounce it until I remembered there are no coyotes in Europe (though they do have jackals).
Seems like it's original etymology was from Nahuatl coyotl, pronounced most similar to the 2 syllable pronunciation of the word, but it was then adapted into Mexican Spanish sounding something along the lines of kai-oh-teh.
But yes, I hate the slang. :(
It comes from coyotl which... I wouldn't call it 2 syllables really but it's not quite 3 either?
I'm going to ask my friends how they say it. I'm Canadian so that's why I mix up the pronunciation probably!
I'm Canadian too and a teacher said long ago it's the oat way. The ee was bc of the cartoon.
No. It's pronounced Kai-ote.
Ky o tee
Not to half the US population
Yep.
This message was edited 2/13/2024, 7:58 AM