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HelpRe: Zoe
in reply to a message by Solunastra
Uh-oh. I saw Zoe and knew what was coming.
This is pretty well-known already, but I just have to say it. My mother's name was Zoe and it was pronounced zo, without the final E sound. I just can't bring myself to think of it as stupid, nor can I bring myself to think of it as a mispronunciation. My college roommate Zoe pronounced it zo, also, and the fact that you've known someone else who does so makes me think that it indeed is not so stupid, and may just be a legitimate minority pronunciation.
This is pretty well-known already, but I just have to say it. My mother's name was Zoe and it was pronounced zo, without the final E sound. I just can't bring myself to think of it as stupid, nor can I bring myself to think of it as a mispronunciation. My college roommate Zoe pronounced it zo, also, and the fact that you've known someone else who does so makes me think that it indeed is not so stupid, and may just be a legitimate minority pronunciation.
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When I posted about this name and its pronunciation a little while ago, somebody suggested that perhaps, at one time, when this name was very unusual in the U.S., people did pronounce it zo. As it became more popular, people became aware of the Greek pronunciation of zo-ee.
My mother was born in 1928, at a time when the name was very rare in the U.S., so this may be the reason why her name was pronounced zo. On the comments page for Zoe, there are a few comments calling this pronunciation "ignorant", which bothers me, because my grandparents were far from being ignorant people. My grandmother was an elementary school teacher. That's why I can't think of the zo pronunciation as being either stupid or ignorant. I really think that zo must have been the normal pronunciation for Americans back in the nineteenth and early-to-mid twentieth century. I've known two Zoes who pronounced it zo, and Solunastra has known one, which makes me think that it should be accepted as an alternative pronunciation.
Sorry, I guess I'm a little defensive about Zoe pronounced zo!
My mother was born in 1928, at a time when the name was very rare in the U.S., so this may be the reason why her name was pronounced zo. On the comments page for Zoe, there are a few comments calling this pronunciation "ignorant", which bothers me, because my grandparents were far from being ignorant people. My grandmother was an elementary school teacher. That's why I can't think of the zo pronunciation as being either stupid or ignorant. I really think that zo must have been the normal pronunciation for Americans back in the nineteenth and early-to-mid twentieth century. I've known two Zoes who pronounced it zo, and Solunastra has known one, which makes me think that it should be accepted as an alternative pronunciation.
Sorry, I guess I'm a little defensive about Zoe pronounced zo!
This message was edited 8/4/2009, 9:04 AM
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