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HelpJai (plus: anyone from Australia here)?
I know we have aussiechic, maybe you know this :)
What do you all think of Jai for a guy?
It was quite popular in Australia in the 90s and 2000s. It made the top 100 for boys.
Now I am wondering, how is this pronounced? Is it a spelling variant of Jay or does it have another pronunciation and/or origin?
It is listed on this site as coming from India but my guess is that the Jai listed is an unrelated name because when I googled Jai I found lots of white Australians in their 20s with it (of course some could have ancestry in India but I somehow doubt it).
So what do you think?
Please rate my list: https://www.behindthename.com/pnl/6232
What do you all think of Jai for a guy?
It was quite popular in Australia in the 90s and 2000s. It made the top 100 for boys.
Now I am wondering, how is this pronounced? Is it a spelling variant of Jay or does it have another pronunciation and/or origin?
It is listed on this site as coming from India but my guess is that the Jai listed is an unrelated name because when I googled Jai I found lots of white Australians in their 20s with it (of course some could have ancestry in India but I somehow doubt it).
So what do you think?
Please rate my list: https://www.behindthename.com/pnl/6232
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Replies
I'm in qld. It's ok. Pronounced like Jye. A few at school jhye jye jai
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Jai is likely to rhyme with sky in Australia. I taught a few when I was still there!
It’s part of a set of trendy names from around that time, and I don’t care for it.
It’s part of a set of trendy names from around that time, and I don’t care for it.
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I’m from Australia too and yes, it is commonly used here. It’s pronounced jye, so not a variant of Jay, no.
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Jai (and Kai)has been quite popular in surf culture here for a long time. I'm not sure who it started with, possibly the Abberton Brothers. Also Jaya which is indonesian (jye-uh) pops up fairly frequently, often with surf families on boys and girls.
Jai and now more commonly spelt Jye is very popular
Jai and now more commonly spelt Jye is very popular
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Hiya im in aus too and I know 2 Jai's both are exactly as you put it 'white Australians in their 20s' :)
I pronounce it like Kai, with a long ee sound after the ja, plus an australian accent.
As far as i can tell its not related to Jay, id group jay in more with the Jayden realm.
Not really a fan of Jai or Jay.
I pronounce it like Kai, with a long ee sound after the ja, plus an australian accent.
As far as i can tell its not related to Jay, id group jay in more with the Jayden realm.
Not really a fan of Jai or Jay.
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Origins…
As the others mentioned, it’s closely linked with surf culture. Aussie surf culture has a big crossover with hippie and new age culture, with its inevitable links to India. You see other names of Indian origin, like Bodhi, popping up in surf families too. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Indian name Jai is the origin of the Australian one.
As the others mentioned, it’s closely linked with surf culture. Aussie surf culture has a big crossover with hippie and new age culture, with its inevitable links to India. You see other names of Indian origin, like Bodhi, popping up in surf families too. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Indian name Jai is the origin of the Australian one.
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The idea of "surf culture" and "surf families" is amazing to me
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Why?
No different to any other type of sporting families. Plenty of football families, surfing is no different. It's pretty nice, I'm part of a surfing mum's group where the mum's take turns surfing or hanging out with the kids.
No different to any other type of sporting families. Plenty of football families, surfing is no different. It's pretty nice, I'm part of a surfing mum's group where the mum's take turns surfing or hanging out with the kids.
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I don't mean it in a disparaging way. I actually love the idea of an activity like that forming the foundation of a family - that kind of theme cohesion is very appealing to me. I just can't wrap my mind around it, it's so different. And the fact that there are enough families like that to create a whole culture! Like yeah, sure, I've met people who really love hockey or whatever, but not enough that there is some kind of underlying philosophy that affects their name choices for kids. I've never in my life heard of a group that would allow parents to play hockey while other hockey-playing people watch their children. That's neat. I wonder what it is about surfing that inspires that kind of structure?
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Surfing has always had very strong family ties, either actual family or 'family'. Like if you look at pro surfers, many have a sibling who is also either pro or had a go at. I live in a beach based area and surfing is very popular and there's some really tight surfing communities.
Surfers often get a bad wrap, but there's a really supportive sense of community
Surfers often get a bad wrap, but there's a really supportive sense of community
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That’s “families who surf” though rather than “families who are part of the new age hippie surfing-as-lifestyle subculture”.
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Yeah, it’s a whole subculture. You see a lot of kids named Reef & the like too.
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That is nice, I think I like JIE more than JAY.
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Me too.
I've also seen it spelled Jye.
I've also seen it spelled Jye.
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