For Bulgarians who have studied abroad or work in companies or on projects with foreigners, it is probably common for their name to be mispronounced or misspelled.
In different cultures, such as the American one, shortening the name is standard practice. Names that are difficult to pronounce may be shortened to even just one letter – the first one.
In China, children are given two names at birth – a traditional name and a “Western” name to use when the birth name is difficult to pronounce abroad.
Xian Zhao, a doctoral student at the University of Toronto whose research focuses on the pronunciation of ethnic names, says that while many people may not realize it, the common mispronunciation of an unfamiliar name is a form of covert discrimination.
Microaggressions
Comments such as that of former US President Donald Trump, who systematically confused Vice President Kamala Harris’s name for “not caring at all” whether he says the name correctly or not, is a classic example of microaggression. This term is used to refer to common everyday verbal or behavioral slights, whether intentional or unintentional, that creates the perception of hostile, dismissive, or negative attitudes toward stigmatized or culturally marginalized groups.
Not pronouncing a person’s name correctly sends a signal that it is not important to make an effort to remember a different name.
Prejudice to the name
Name bias is the tendency people have to judge and show preference toward people with certain types of names – usually names that are of English origin. Along with gender bias, height bias and ageism, it is among the most common type of prejudice. When a person’s name sounds atypical, it can disadvantage him/her during university or job applications.
Publicly correcting mispronounced names sends an important signal that there is no excuse for not learning people’s names. It also serves as a role model for those who accentuate that failing to address the comment at the time means taking the position of the one discriminating.
Consequences
In the study cited above, it has also been shown that systematically hearing one’s name’s wrong version leads to lower self-esteem, which can also be an indicator of lower levels of health and well-being.
Whereas non-traditional names used to be the cause of jokes in series’ plots, producers are now increasingly trying to normalise names that were until recently perceived as difficult to pronounce.
Lessons learned
Platforms like LinkedIn allow a person to record how her/his name is pronounced. One can better prepare themselves on how to properly pronounce the names of people they work with. If the pronounced name is wrong, a clarification should be made and the person corrected.
A person’s name carries a lot of information about his/her identity and roots, so it should not be mispronounced deliberately or in search of the easier one.
