Comments on: What is Matt Lauer’s son’s name? Say again (update)

By: aimee

aimee — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 05:46:48 +0000

okay i think almost everyone on this page is in someway wrong i believe that if a person wants to name there child something from a different culture they should be able to no one should have to be patranized or objectified in anyway, and i also believe that someone from a different culture may get made fun of or questioned alot but its no big deal i have a very french name with many different middle names but i actually didnt get questioned alot, i believe that with such an easy name like thijs that he will have no problems.!

okay and, Len you saying all of the things you did made you sound more ‘un educated’, then everyone on this page by saying that, just because someone can’t pronounce something Dutch does not make them un educated it makes them normal, because the truth is most people can only speak 1-3 languages and it usually isn’t dutch because that is not a language that is used alot, so i would appreciarted it you went and got educated on the fact that everyone is different and all speak different languages.

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By: Kristen

Kristen — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 15:04:05 +0000

I find the name is growing on me. The spelling is impossible for English-speakers, it’s true, but the pronunciation is pleasing. I think if they had spelled it Tyce, no one would have blinked. The negative reactions are mostly because we who live in the United States know that there is no chance of anyone ever knowing how to pronounce it, and that’s a little tough on the kid–though certainly not something that will ruin his life.

My surname is Dutch, with a ‘y’ in it that used to be an ‘ij’–some ancestor changed it after coming to the U.S., because the ‘ij’ pronounced as ‘y’ doesn’t make sense here. I think it’s reasonable to make either decision: either to decide to take on the hassle of having to explain your name every single time, or to decide to modify the spelling to suit the local alphabet. I think of it more as “translating” the name, rather than changing it.

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By: chic mommy

chic mommy — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 21:15:12 +0000

I actually wish my parents had named me something easy to pronounce. Having a foreign sounding name while growing up in Smalltown, U.S.A. wasn’t easy. Everytime some substitute teacher came in and took attendance, she would pause for a moment before she butchered my name. After a while I would just beat her to the punch and say, “I’m here.”

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By: Terri

Terri — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 20:00:16 +0000

Whoa…I feel like I stumbled upon a fight between second graders:

“You’re stupid!”

“No, you’re stupid!”

“Well, you’re stupider!”

Geez…

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By: dietrich

dietrich — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 15:59:44 +0000

Oh, I survived. The point here is that the kid will be made fun of. I don’t go around whining about my name, but it is kind of related to this post. Get off your high horse and save your sarcastic BS for somebody else. Just where in North America did you grow up ? Canada ? By the way … 411… people don’t say 411 anymore. Do you use LOL too ? Thanks for the useless advice.

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By: mysterious

mysterious — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 13:27:12 +0000

Dietrich…you’ll get over it… and…they have therapy for people with menial issues like yourself.
and … 411… i grew up in north america with dutch names and still managed to survive.

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By: alabamapink

alabamapink — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 02:59:56 +0000

I named my child something slightly out of the ordinary for this country: Alastair. For some bizarre reason no one (even family) seems to be able to pronounce it correctly. We get either “AH-La-Stair” or “A-La-STAIR”. I guess that’s why we gave him two middle names to go by if he gets sick of the butchering of his name.

Celebrity kids will never have a “normal” childhood like the rest of us. I am guessing it is for that reason that the famous choose to bestow such unusual monikers on their offspring. Remember Grace Slick named her daugher “god” (and then later changed the name to something slightly more conventional)?

For all we know the newest Lauer will attend a posh private school where his parents will pay dearly to ensure his name is never mispronounced. OR he’ll just attend a boarding school in Europe where everyone is multilingual and enlighted as to the correct way to pronounce names in all languages.

I went to elementary school with a Siani and a Nashua. Sub teachers always butchered their names.

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By: dietrich

dietrich — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 02:24:20 +0000

Take it from one who knows… American children aren’t as “enlightened” as all of you apparently are. This kid will be made fun of due to his name, period.

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By: mysterious

mysterious — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 01:06:00 +0000

please people. I am dutch, and we dont run around making fun of North american first names…and yes celebitchy.. you can be a little ignorant and rude for a person who has married a foreigner. (and living in switzerland I might add). …. ignorance and intolerance is what started iraq/irak/العراق
and other countries in the first place… can’t we all just get along????

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By: Celebitchy

Celebitchy — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 21:40:20 +0000

Keri, that reminds me of that Saturday Night Live skit from about 10(?) years ago with the guest host twisting potential kids names into really far out taunts. I wanted to add that to the post, but I don’t know enough details to make it relevant.

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