Korean Job Discussion Forums

[tomato]

Harry: �ظ� is a girl's name in Korean.

Eugene: ���� is a girl's name in Korean.

Harriet: Yesterday, a Korean teacher at the school corrected me for naming a student Harriet. The student's classmates are teasing her because the name ends with ��. The Korean teacher won't tell me what that means, so it must really be bad.

[Horangi Munshin]

Ummm, I think I understand the objection to ��. Telling someone to eat �� is the equivalent of F you.

Daisy too close to dwaeji. I can't think of anymore.

[Crois]

Alexis - they just call the girl Alex.

Phoebie - they call the girl peebe.

[wylde]

george or georgie

sounds like d!ck when spoken in korean

[Crois]

Avoid the name Wylde. Just the reputation that comes with it.

[Saxiif]

Mary or Christina are generally a mistake due to the "Merry Christmas" choruses that generally result. Ralph is also hell for them to pronounce.

My kids always giggle about Laila, but I'm not sure why.

[bellum99]

Give the name Venus and watch them try to say it properly.

I laughed my butt off the first time.

They say it with a P not a V

[uberscheisse]

here are some others

"adolf"
"osama"
"gene simmons"
"hercules"

[Corporal]

Simon

Michael

Kevin

[osangrl]

Jill


DO NOT NAME A GIRL Jill......i think it mean vagina or something.

[Saxiif]

Oh and my boss has forbidden me to name anyone George since that's Bush's name.

[FUBAR]

Never name two students in your class:

Neil and Bob

[VanIslander]

My experience is strongly opposite of some advice given.

"Harry" may sound similary to a girl's name in Korean but two of my students (in different classes) chose that name.

Here's my system:

When there's a new student:

(1) Ask students to volunteer a letter from the alphabet and write a name beginning with that letter. Someone says "F" and write "Frank"; someone else says "O" and write "Oscar", and so on, until a dozen names are on the board.
(2) Everybody repeats in a chorus as the teacher pronounces the names.
(3) Ask the student what name is a bad name, and proceed to remove names one at a time (repeat all the names to remind them of the sounds; have each student veto one option - not a general shouting match).
(4) The new student then pronounces the remaining 6 names and the teacher removes a couple (because they can't pronounce it or whatever).
(5) The new student then chooses a name from the remaining 4 choices.

This method has served me very well for over a year. I recommend it.

The children find the process fun and yet take it seriously, especially when it's their turn to veto an option, even lobbying others. I observe their interactions and gain info as to which ones I should veto when it's my turn to cut a few options.

Using the method, two boys chose "Harry", so Tomato, it can't be so bad. (But that was BEFORE the Harry Potter craze last year; now they're teased about it sometimes.)

Also chosen were "Simon","Michael", "Kevin". (Sorry Corporal, but if you practice b/v enough, they'll proudly be able to pronounce "Kevin" without a 'b'.)

The method has also resulted in girls chosing "Mary" and "Christina", without any comments, even in December (with my students anyways - I don't think they've made the connection, even the middle school students).

One of my middle school students has the name "Jill". She got it years ago so I don't know what she has gone through, but she's pretty comfortable with it now (an assertive student).

The method I use avoids many problems. If the name is too much like a Korean word, the students nix it or giggle (then I nix it). If the student cannot pronounce it, it's nixed ("Zac" gets eliminated often). And the student feels s/he has chosen the name chosen from the final list.

But no method is flawless.

One name slipped through with a younger class of mine on a day I must have been sleep walking. Somebody said "O" and I wrote down a particular name beginning with that letter. Nobody made anything of it, not even a cracked smile among the 9 year olds. (That's because they're too young to have learned of it's resemblance yet.)

Well, in the end the girl chose the "O" name and all was great. Until I went into the office and introduced the name to my Korean co-workers. They had a howl. They said the student cannot possibly have that name because in a couple of years, in middle school, they'll be made fun of - it just won't do.

Her name was "Orilla"

As in gorilla.

Now she's "Ori" as in (Or-ee). It's my one disaster and a sign I must be on my toes when it's my turn to remove options from the whiteboard.

Orilla. Geeesh.

[mourningclam]

I named a kid "Cleatis". He doesnt seem to have a problem with it.

[Zed]

Once, a mother made me change her daughter's name from the one I had given her. I named her Vivien which the mother objected to since there is a lingeree store with that name.