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HelpRe: Robin and Robyn
in reply to a message by Perrine
Robin is a family name, used for my cousin instead of Robert; I like it very much and would use it, given enough sons.
Robyn ... OK, I know it's just a feminisation with a girly y; but in Afrikaans it is the dictionary word for a ruby and is pronounced Rroo-uh-BEIN. Robyn has been used for girls in South Africa, but not that often. I wouldn't use either spelling for a girl.
David Lodge wrote a novel called Nice Work in which the leading female character is Robin. This causes confusion when she has to spend time in an industrial company where, based on the spelling of her name, she is assumed to be a man until she arrives and arrangements have to be rearranged. One character explodes angrily: her name should have been spelt differently!
Robyn ... OK, I know it's just a feminisation with a girly y; but in Afrikaans it is the dictionary word for a ruby and is pronounced Rroo-uh-BEIN. Robyn has been used for girls in South Africa, but not that often. I wouldn't use either spelling for a girl.
David Lodge wrote a novel called Nice Work in which the leading female character is Robin. This causes confusion when she has to spend time in an industrial company where, based on the spelling of her name, she is assumed to be a man until she arrives and arrangements have to be rearranged. One character explodes angrily: her name should have been spelt differently!
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