Re: Ayla
in reply to a message by RoxStar
Yes, I recall that.
I think the fact that it looks like Kayla is most of what makes Ayla accessible to Americans.
Anyway, Ayla of CotCB / Earth's Children is pronounced to rhyme Kayla.
https://youtu.be/nTR4jQYrmnY?t=48 (Jean Auel talking about Ayla, saying it to rhyme Kayla)
So if people were influenced by that, I think they'd be pronouncing it to rhyme Kayla.
I think people like the sound of the name pronounced either way, because it's a fashionable sound.
I just personally don't understand why so many Americans seem to think Ayla pronounced Isla is intuitive, when only foreign words and names are written Ay- to indicate the initial sound "eye." Unless you count the word "aye." Americans have even respelled Aiden as Ayden ... maybe to make sure nobody says Aiden as eye-den?
I really like a name that sounds like "eye-la" myself, but I'd never use Ayla as the spelling ... because I'm influenced by things like CotCB and Ayden and Kayla, far more than by exposure to foreign languages, and I automatically read Ayla to rhyme Kayla. I like Ayla-prn-"eye-la" alright - as a foreign(ish) name. I know a family whose daughter is Ayla prn eye-la. But I happen to know they have Turkish heritage. If I used that spelling myself, I'd fully expect people to missay it to rhyme Kayla, because that's what I always do. And I'd half-expect people would think I was trying to make it seem "exotic," because my family has no other language or interesting foreign connections.
It seems to me that Aila, Eila, and even Ila, Iyla, and Aela are more intuitively prn "eye-la" in English, than Ayla is. Apparently I'm in the minority (of people who like the name) who think that, however, because Ayla is the second most frequent spelling after Isla. It'd be interesting to find out how many of them rhyme Kayla and how many sound like Isla.
- mirfak
I think the fact that it looks like Kayla is most of what makes Ayla accessible to Americans.
Anyway, Ayla of CotCB / Earth's Children is pronounced to rhyme Kayla.
https://youtu.be/nTR4jQYrmnY?t=48 (Jean Auel talking about Ayla, saying it to rhyme Kayla)
So if people were influenced by that, I think they'd be pronouncing it to rhyme Kayla.
I think people like the sound of the name pronounced either way, because it's a fashionable sound.
I just personally don't understand why so many Americans seem to think Ayla pronounced Isla is intuitive, when only foreign words and names are written Ay- to indicate the initial sound "eye." Unless you count the word "aye." Americans have even respelled Aiden as Ayden ... maybe to make sure nobody says Aiden as eye-den?
I really like a name that sounds like "eye-la" myself, but I'd never use Ayla as the spelling ... because I'm influenced by things like CotCB and Ayden and Kayla, far more than by exposure to foreign languages, and I automatically read Ayla to rhyme Kayla. I like Ayla-prn-"eye-la" alright - as a foreign(ish) name. I know a family whose daughter is Ayla prn eye-la. But I happen to know they have Turkish heritage. If I used that spelling myself, I'd fully expect people to missay it to rhyme Kayla, because that's what I always do. And I'd half-expect people would think I was trying to make it seem "exotic," because my family has no other language or interesting foreign connections.
It seems to me that Aila, Eila, and even Ila, Iyla, and Aela are more intuitively prn "eye-la" in English, than Ayla is. Apparently I'm in the minority (of people who like the name) who think that, however, because Ayla is the second most frequent spelling after Isla. It'd be interesting to find out how many of them rhyme Kayla and how many sound like Isla.
- mirfak
This message was edited 9/28/2019, 9:38 PM