Message: "Leigh" - Behind the Name

Leigh

by Drak

3/7/2006, 10:14 PM

I've only met guys with this spelling. So when parents try to make boy's names look feminine by spelling them "Ashleigh" or "Ryleigh" it just doesn't work for me. Anyone else agree?

#Leigh

Replies

- Dray

3/10/2006, 9:38 PM

This struck me as a very feminine name. Maybe all the unpronounced letters.

- AshJ

3/8/2006, 10:08 AM

Leigh is the female version, which is why most female Ashley/Ashlee/Ashleigh's are spelt Ashleigh.

- Elemmennope +2

3/8/2006, 10:06 AM

Leigh = girl while Lee = boy in my experience. Is that a Brit vs. U.S. thing?

- Lauren B (guest) +1

3/8/2006, 2:51 PM

I don't think so

In my experience, Leigh is normally the feminine spelling and Lee the masculine, and I'm in the UK.

- Elemmennope

3/8/2006, 7:39 PM

Hmmm... strange. I don't know then!

- excited mom to be +1

3/8/2006, 7:42 AM

To me Lee is masculine and Leigh is feminine. That said I have seen Lee used as a feminine mn, but I don't believe I have seen Leigh used as a feminine fn or mn. My brother's mn is Lee, my neice's mn is Leigh, I had a guy friend in college named Lee, so here in the midwest Lee is masculine, Leigh feminine.

- LeAnne_24

3/9/2006, 11:30 PM

My grandmas middle name is Lea prononced Lee. I think spelling it Lea makes it look less masculine.

This message was edited 3/9/2006, 11:31 PM

- Elinor (Elly747)

3/8/2006, 5:59 AM

The only Leigh I know personally is a 12-year-old boy, but in general, I do think Lee is more masculine and Leigh more feminine.

_____________________________________________________________________

♥Elinor♥

- Elena (guest)

3/8/2006, 5:38 AM

Here in the South (Virginia), it's pretty much understood that Leigh is the female spelling and Lee is the male spelling. That's not to say I've never come across a female Lee because I have. On the other hand, I don't believe I've ever met a male Leigh.

- Soul (guest)

3/8/2006, 5:27 AM

I agree; Leigh is more masculin than feminine to me, too.

- Lady Raltz (Lady_Raltz)

3/7/2006, 11:03 PM

I have never actually met anybody who was just Leigh. However I have read books portraying it as a male character. I would consider Leigh to be a male name and I completely agree with the Ryleigh still looking masculine. However I have known more Ashleys to be girl as apposed to boys anyway so the name is always feminine to me.

My own business always bores me to death; I prefer other people's.

- Oscar Wilde

- chazda

3/7/2006, 10:29 PM

I'm accustomed to the "Leigh" spelling used to indicate feminine, myself. There are exceptions, though; I suppose it's basically ambiguous. To me it's still pretty strongly a surname element more than personal and so isn't really gendered in itself.

The reason I don't care for those respellings of -ley names is because they look too elaborated and embellished, "prettied up." I don't think it's effective in making them seem femme, true, but mostly I just think it looks overbaked.

- chazda

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