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Araceli
Araceli is a name that has a lot of aesthetic appeal for me, but I'm not completely sold on the pronounciation. Any suggetions? I've heard: Are-uh-CHELL-ee, Are-uh-SAY-lee, and Are-uh-SELL-ee. What do you think of the name itself? Its meaning is gorgeous! (Alter of the sky).
Another bothersome point for me is that when said aloud, with the "sell" pronounciation, it just sounds like you're reciting the letters R,S,L and E. Would this put you off the name?
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I went to school with a couple Aracelis - they pronounced it ar-uh-SELL-ee. I always liked it a lot. I agree on the aesthetic appeal; it looks gorgeous.I don't think it sounds like R-S-L-E. When I say the name the sounds kind of blend together in such a way that it sounds more like aruh-SELLEE so it doesn't really sound like you're reciting letters. I honestly never would've noticed had you not pointed it out.
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I think it's pretty, but it kind of looks like an Italian surname.
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I think the proper Spanish pronounciation is the second you state. I'm inclined to use the first because my first language is Italian.It's a very pretty name, but feels a bit too "exotic" to use for me. Also it's a bit weird to be named, literally "altar of heaven." I once met one who went by Ara, which is a cute nn.
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I've never heard this one pronounced in real life. I've always assumed it was "ahr-uh-SELL-ee," but now that you mention it "ahr-uh-SAY-lee" is probably closer to the real way. It's very pretty, either way.I never would have gotten the RSLE thing. Kind of neat. One of my favorite names I is Elsie (LC) and I wouldn't let that stop me for a minute.
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There are two correct pronunciations:A-ra-THEH-li is the Spanish pronunciation.A-ra-SEH-li is the Latin American Spanish pronunciation.(In the same vein, the second compound in my name, Rocio is 'ro-thee-oh' in Spanish, 'ro-see-oh' in Latin American Spanish).I'm always of the opinion, if you don't like the proper pronunciation of a name, you shouldn't use it.
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The Aracelis I know have all been Spanish and pronounce it a-ra-THEH-li
http://www.forvo.com/word/araceli/#es (the 2nd one, the Male from Spain pronunciation, not the Argentinian one, though I know you can definitely pronounce it like that). This is my preference for pronunciation because it's the one I'm used to.With the CH sound in it, that'd be Italian (but it still shouldn't sound like "are" at the start, it should be a-ra-SE/CHE/THE-li, the consonant should start the syllables and t he vowels should end them). I think the Italian pronunciation is nice, too.Are-uh-SELL-ee sounds very Anglicized to me, which I don't like at all. I'm not religious so the meaning doesn't make it or break it for me, but it's an okay name. I guess I'm neutral on it. It's kind of dated... it peaked in Spain in the 1960s and is now only 1/6th as popular for baby girls as it was back in the '60s.

This message was edited 5/22/2011, 1:18 PM

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Good information. Thanks.
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You're welcome!
I find forvo.com can be really helpful with name pronunciations.
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I've always heard it pronounced Are-uh-SELL-ee. I think it's a beautiful name.
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