Kindergarten and Up

Having just arrived from Korea with her family, Unhei is anxious about making friends and worried that no one will be able to pronounce her name. So instead of introducing herself on the first day of school, she decides to pick a new name.

When a large glass jar filled with names appears on her desk, Unhei happily discovers that her classmates want to help her.

I love that her classmates got together and started collecting names for her to use. It’s nice to see children choosing kindness.

You can’t take it personally when people mispronounce your name. Kids are just learning how to pronounce words and adults just don’t listen. People are always mispronouncing my last name because it’s pronounced differently in the Philippines. In the Philippines, it’s pronounced Ad-laow-an. In America, most people pronounce it Ad-la-wan. Some people pronounce the ‘L’ before the “D” and say “Al-da-wan.” Others only hear the A and make up the rest. My family’s personal favorite last name mix up is Avalon.

When it comes to names, the more unique the better. As an Alex in a sea of Alexs, I know what I’m talking about. But as you can see in the Baby Blues comic, even the most unique names are already taken.

One thing is for sure, if you have an odd sounding or odd spelled name, people are going to remember you.

This weeks’ Weird but True Fact about Odd Names

At least thirteen people in the United States are named “Donut.”