Baby Name Poll Results

I think stay with the traditional spelling. There are always going to be people who mess up even the most straightforward names, so "dumbing down" spelling won’t usually work to the best advantage. Example, I have a friend named Jenny. Easy, right? But some people still pronounce it as Jinny.

Stick with the traditional way.

Agree with posters 1 & 2.

Well technically both Esme and Esmee are the "traditional way." Esme is English, but Esmee is also Dutch (and another English form). It has an extra E because in Dutch, Esme is the masculine form. The second E makes it feminine. So I would use either of those spellings...Esmay looks a but tacky, to be honest, and I think that most people know how to pronounce Esme/Esmee. Good luck!

Esmee (with acute accent on the first 'e') would be the French spelling - it IS a French name after all, meaning 'beloved' (modern French spelling has the name 'Aimee' for a girl, or 'Aime' for a boy, both with acute accent on the first 'e'). So… if you have a girl and are living in the US I'd opt for Esmay because 1) that's exactly how it's pronounced if you only speak English, 2) it brings to mind the lovely blooming month a May, a nod to femininity, 3) if your girl travels to France or Latin European countries when she's older, Esmay (or Esmee) will look a lot better (Esme is for boys in France and super rare)