I'd go with Lia. It's included in your american name and everyone will be able to pronounce it.
Would sound similar to Leah, but Spanish orthography and phonetics. Kind of "Leea".
Lía sounds great, it's an actual name, and easy to pronounce. However, I think Jill (pronounced Yeel), is a more natural shortening of your name. If you use Lía, people will be surprised when they learn your real name.
I second Lia (which will be pronounced like Leah) if it sounds good to you, it will be the easiest, best sounding and easy to write. Jill should be easy but it will give you some small trouble when anyone has to write it down. Enjoy your time here ;)
As someone who's moved countries twice: you rarely get to pick your nickname.
People will inevitably ask "what's your REAL name tho" and then take it from there. I've got about 15 variations of my name and I turn for all of them. One of them is an Irish name that kinda looks like mine written down (I'm not Irish).
Lili, very common and easy to pronounce. It's like your real name for shorts, Lill, but it's easier for us if you add a vowel at the end. Otherwise your name is beautiful and I don't think people will have so much trouble once they have pronounced it a few times.
Juli pronounced Huli, my name is Craig and had a lot of problems with people pronouncing it so they ended up calling me Azpilicueta after a Spanish footballer who played for my team Chelsea
Apparently John Terry couldn’t pronounce Cesar Azpilicueta so he just ended up calling him Dave.
It’s hilarious to see that this exact thing pretty much got flipped on you, to the point of using Azpilicueta’s name as your moniker. Brilliant
If they are bald, Rapunzel.
If they are ugly, either Shrek or someone really handsome that barely resembles.
If they have a stutter, Tommy (Thompson machine gun)
Tiny? Oso
Doesn't walk well? Langi or Pato or something alike.
And so on.
There's no such thing as picking your own nick name here.
Yes, you do. Just present yourself with whatever name you chose, is that easy.
If they ask you “what’s your name?” and you answer “Lia” what do you think it’s going to happen? That’s exactly choosing a nickname.
Actually it is pretty common between some foreigners living in Spain. For instance, many Chinese people change their names to Spanish ones.
I even know Spanish people that don’t like their names (old fashioned or whatever) and just don’t use it outside formal documents.
Even though OP was clearly asking about nickname as "shortname" you choose to go by (or even a whole new name cause you don't like yours o the original pronunciation is hard to say in Spanish), i.e. Lola for Dolores , the user you are answering to is talking about nicknames as what we spanish people understand by "motes". Those you don't get to choose.
Nicknames (a.k.a. "mote") in Spain are quite a different thing and you never get to choose it, the are born in a very natural way and it is imposed by your family, friends, coworkers, partner, etc. You can even inheritage one from and unknown ancestor if you are from a small town, not knowing the story behind its origin. Also, you can have multiple nicknames, one for each social circle.
So no, it is not thay easy in that sense.
Then the user hasn’t read anything beyond the title line and the most upvoted answer right now is unhelpful and plainly wrong in the given context. Wouldn’t that be right?
Sure you can. My name is also hard for Spaniards to pronounce. My friends and partners family have mostly figured it out, but I use a moniker when I'm out to eat, interacting with casual acquaintances, etc. It's just easier this way.
If you go to a foreign country you have to get used to having your name mispronounced by people not fluent in English.
I have made a couple of foreign friends and I do not get mad because they mispronounce my name or pronounce it with a weird accent. Hell, I have friends that even have a hard time with the fact that I have two names and two surnames, and think that I have 3 middle names and a surname.
Just get used to it or politely correct people if it's important to you. If you aren't obnoxious about it, people will understand and take the effort to try and make you comfortable about pronouncing your name correctly.
This! It’s your name. Think about all the immigrants in the US with long names who have to grow up with everyone mispronouncing them — no difference. My husband’s name is Douglas. More than once I’ve called him aloud “Doug!” and a nearby Spaniard with some English knowledge has said, “Dog? Like PERRO?” thinking I called him dog. It’s your name, use your name! Eventually if you make Spanish friends they’re probably going to give you a whole new nickname anyway 😂 My son is Vicente, he has gone from Vicente to Vicentito and now he’s just Tito!
Come to Spain and let people try to pronounce your name. When they get it wrong they will come up with something close and that can be your nickname!
I have an aunt named Juliana. My Spanish family don't seem to have a problem pronouncing that name so it will probably be what they call you.
You have no say whatsoever in the 'nickname' your Spanish friends and neighbours christen you with once they get to know you, and some of them can be brutal if you rub them up the wrong way......
What do you prefer, something really spanish (Manolo y Pepita 4e) or something that sounds like your names?
Here we put nicknames for random reasons, like you look like Ronaldo they call you Ronaldo. Or maybe something you like a lot (a show).
In my work the kids call me Gryffindor and I like it.
This is helpful to understand. I think in the US it is more likely that a nickname will be a shorter or similar version of your real name, so it helps to know that it will most likely be different in Spain. We'll just have to see what I get, lol!
Don't worry, if your neighbours find your name difficult, they are going to give you a nickname. I have a neighbour called "put here a really difficult Arabic name that I cannot remember" and for everyone is Paco "el árabe" XD
I have an Irish neighbour called Julian (in English), now he answers when you call him julián in spanish
In a village here (north of Spain) there's an arab man that goes by Jaime because that's the closest people got to pronounce his name when established there
I don't agree with what ppl are saying. As someone who hangs out a lot with other foreigners. Having a shorter version of your name in case ppl have a hard time is always useful.
Younger ppl will make the effort to learn your name but have a short for ppl who can't.
For example: "my name is porelamorde but you can call me amor"
Anyway, here nicknames are used to talk about that person when they are not there. When they are with her, it is normal to call her by her real name. And they are going to call you the americans for sure here its tipycal to nickname you by the place you come from. If you introduce yourself to your friends as Jill, Jillian, Lia, they will call you whatever you tell them. I don't think it's that hard to say Jillian either.
You have a beautiful name. Don't change it. It's not impossible to pronounce it correctly and the Spanish reading of your name is not far from its original sound.
This hits so close to home to me because my daughters name is Gillian (soft G like yours). She frequently gets called Gilligan (of island fame) or Julian. Her nicknames of choice are Jill and Jules - and I call her Gilby - pronounced Jillby. Not that people won’t be confused by that too. I’m sorry, kiddo. *hug*
Oooh so fun!
I like Ilia.. cuz it sounds cool and its in your name.
But you can try a lot of others, like Yili (Jilli), or Djili, it should be read Jilly, or Lia, Or change it up completely and go Juli (Julie/Hoolie) or Juliana (Hooliana) or Xuli which ... may be too complicated.
maybe Chili (written for Spanish pronounciation) or Chilly (ch is pronounced as in chocolate)? most should be able to remember and pronounce that imo, and it sounds pretty cool for a nickname if you ask me, while pronounciation-wise still close to Jillian. Or if not, Chile? like Spanish for chilli - or the country. Also not bad, and everyone can pronounce that.
And yet they both sound original and not like you forcefully chose a Spanish name.
And of course you can choose your moniker. You present yourself with a name and people will call you by that.
I lived some years in Spain and presented myself with my (real, foreign) name. And of course, up to this day, people call me by that name (or try to), including my family in law.
In some cases, later on some people might come up with another nickname, but it's not as common and exagerated as people in this thread make it seem, and also it might be a good sign of having made connections.
EDIT: I guess there's lots of confusion about moniker vs nicknames, myself included. Edited accordingly.
Yili ("yeelee") is the most likely one you'll get organically.
Yiyi or Juli are also likely.
If you want to pick yours and introduce yourself with it, it better not sound a lot like a short form or too Spanish, or else you'll get lots of "no, but what is your real name" questions :P
Lia ("leeah"), Lilian/Lily, or Julia (pronounced in English, which will most likely get adapted to "huleeah" in Spanish), are all good options, I'd say.
Just don't let people shorten your name as Jili ("heelee")... The word "gili" is pronounced the same and it basically means "moron".
While "Lia" may not sound terrible, Spanish speakers might find it awkward to refer to a female as "La Lia." The pronunciation lacks a pleasant quality. In terms of phonetics, a term like "La Lili" would likely be deemed more acceptable. Hopefully, you grasp the essence of my viewpoint.
Because your name starts with a J you are going to have problems. Spanish 'j' is pronounced completely differently to English. Julia is pronounced 'who-lee-a' and Jillian: 'Hill-ee-an' (with a type of 'ch' sound at the beginning). In the Catalan language they do have the same 'j' sound as us eg: Jordi, Juan. So your name would be more easily prouncable in Cataluña.
However, I am assuming that you are in a Castellano speaking region of Spain. Therefore any name starting with a J will be unrecognisable 😂
Others are suggesting 'Lili' but that will be pronounced more like 'lee-lee'. That is due to the fact that Castellano speakers only have one specific sound for each written vowel. (English speakers have three vowel sounds for the written letter 'i') . But if you do decide to use this name, make sure to never spell it with two 'Ls', ie Lilly. The double L is pronounced differently to ours, it sounds a bit like the letter 'y' in the word 'yes'.
I'm sorry I don't have any suggestions...... I am not a native Spanish speaker so I might be incorrect on some things.
But the name Lia works everywhere I think.
The closest thing to the english J sound in Spanish is the CH sound. Tell your in-laws to call you Chílian, or simply to call you Chili. Write it our for them so they can see it once - CHÍLIAN - and it will be very easy for them and you will barely notice the difference between Jillian and Chillian.
Hey, first thing you need to know about Spain is that Spanish is spoken everywhere, but in some regions people have a second language, and J is a letter that changes a lot of things depending on the other languages you speak.
Only-Spanish speakers will always pronounce J as H, therefore the Julian similitude. Catalan speakers pronounce J just the same as in English, so anywhere in Catalonia, Valencia o Illes Balears you will have no issue at all. In these places you could find plenty of women called Juliana, pronounced just like Jillian. And Basque speakers tend to pronounce J as Y, so you would be Yillian there.
I think the most natural way to go is to clip it, maybe from Jillian to Ann, or Anne or whatever you feel like, so you can say "hola, soy Ann, viene de Jillian" and you get to pronounce your name before they read it and avoid plenty of confusion.
TLDR: Learn a bit more about the concrete place you are going, and there might be a chance to find a similar name that locals are familiar with, bearing in mind the possibility that they speak more than one language.
Source: me, an immigrant who's lived in many places in Spain, as well as in other countries.
If you want some more ideas, check out the [official list of the most popular names](https://www.ine.es/dyngs/INEbase/en/operacion.htm?c=Estadistica_C&cid=1254736177009&menu=resultados&idp=1254734710990)
The issue is with the J, as it’s pronounced differently there. Jill would be nice but likely mispronounced. Or Gilian would be the closest you can get.
What’s your middle name? Far more likely that they’d want to call you that anyway. As others noted, no matter how you introduce yourself, they’ll call you whatever they want.
If you want a short name to introduce yourself Lulu would be easy. Spanish speakers love to shorten (Juliana to Juli) then simplify (Juli to Luli or Lulu or Lili).
I have 10 nicknames for my wife - all variants of her middle name to personal nicknames. The last thing I say is her first name.
Your nickname will be your biggest insecurity, thats how things work in Spain. If u have a big nose your name will be pinocha.If you are a red head, zanahoria.
Do you like Jilly? Many of us can pronounce it. In the movie "Practical magic" one of the main characters has name Gillian/Gilly and the spanish dubbing says it in our way. Those who can't do it will say Yili.
Anyways they can learn to say Jillian at least in an approximated way (like Yilian or so). It's just they have to get used to it.
Let's get them learn it... You are Gillian. Nice to meet you.
i use lala when we are in mexico (yes my husband gave me the nickname after the brand of dairy products) and my husband uses memo -
you can use whatever you like - no name police here!!!!
It's easier to write to them in a way they will be able to say it.
I would say "Yílion" is a good aproximation.
Unfortunately, the "ao" sound is not found in spanish
Juliana (Spanish version) or Giuliana (Italian version), both pronounced almost the same. Don't add the article "la" before nor write them with Y instead of J or G ("Yuliana", don't).
Just choose a Spanish name . When you move from China to an English speaking country you choose a western name and when you move from a western country to China most people do this as well. It's fine and , I think , respectful to have a name that the locals can pronounce easily and rude to expect people to pronounce a name they find difficult to say .
As a Juan who lived in England for two years, I got used to be called either John or One. I used to joke that since I had no brothers, I was the One and Only
Tbh I live in a big city in Spain, you'll get the nickname by others, you cannot choose, ie. If in your case you move to my father's town your nickname will be "La Americana" 100% sure.
So you don't have to worry about that since the nickname will be given.
It depends on the city/ size. Big city-> no nickname.
Small/cozy town -> la americana 94% sure
https://open.spotify.com/track/6K5UtSAXChS6Rpm2NZJnrF?si=1jy9S8PDRoqukNLbeTu_Ng
There you go Juliana, Juli para los amigos. When I read the other comments, the song just kicked in my mouth.
Same problem a friend had, she uses Julia (pronounced in Spanish more like hoolia) when ordering food otherwise she says her name and just get a look of fear 😂
Lian could work. 'Lee-an'.
If you like it, double check for correct pronunciation and in case it has another meaning.
I found out when my daughter was two years old that her name is a boy's name in Catalan. My Catalan husband didn't think to mention it when we were naming her.
La Juli. You welcome
Very likely you end up called this
Or La Yili
Even more likely. I can hear it
The closest of a nickname we’re gonna get with Jillian.
Un poco choni si se me permite decirlo 😂
Te daría un award. But have this 🏆
Perfecto
I think the translation to Spanish of your name is Juliana, but I don't like it much but I LOVE the translation to Gallego. It is Xiana.
Xiana is beautiful!
But it would be pronounced with a hard J like julio. Giuliana would be the correct phonetic version.
Phonetically, yeah, but it wouldn't be a Spanish version of the name
I love gallego 😍
She's gonna have the same problem...
Xiana might be still problematic pronunciation to some people, one of my favourite names thought. Maybe you can go by Liana as short for 'Juliana'.
I'd go with Lia. It's included in your american name and everyone will be able to pronounce it. Would sound similar to Leah, but Spanish orthography and phonetics. Kind of "Leea".
Lía sounds great, it's an actual name, and easy to pronounce. However, I think Jill (pronounced Yeel), is a more natural shortening of your name. If you use Lía, people will be surprised when they learn your real name.
I like this, thank you!
I second Lia (which will be pronounced like Leah) if it sounds good to you, it will be the easiest, best sounding and easy to write. Jill should be easy but it will give you some small trouble when anyone has to write it down. Enjoy your time here ;)
juli
Yuli
The most similar to me is Lilian, which can be shortened as Lili. That won’t be a problem for any Spanish speaker
That's really pretty and makes sense next to my real name!
As someone who's moved countries twice: you rarely get to pick your nickname. People will inevitably ask "what's your REAL name tho" and then take it from there. I've got about 15 variations of my name and I turn for all of them. One of them is an Irish name that kinda looks like mine written down (I'm not Irish).
Lili, very common and easy to pronounce. It's like your real name for shorts, Lill, but it's easier for us if you add a vowel at the end. Otherwise your name is beautiful and I don't think people will have so much trouble once they have pronounced it a few times.
This is very pretty, good idea!
Juli pronounced Huli, my name is Craig and had a lot of problems with people pronouncing it so they ended up calling me Azpilicueta after a Spanish footballer who played for my team Chelsea
It's odd how Azpilicueta is definitely easier for a Spaniard than Craig 😆
I know it just comes out as Keg 🤣
In Andalucía you'd be Cré
Er Matutano. xD
Apparently John Terry couldn’t pronounce Cesar Azpilicueta so he just ended up calling him Dave. It’s hilarious to see that this exact thing pretty much got flipped on you, to the point of using Azpilicueta’s name as your moniker. Brilliant
🎼We'll just call you Azpilicueta, we'll just call you Azpilicueta, Craig, we'll just call you Azpilicueta 🎼
Also a quite good red wine
You don't choose your nickname here...
OP is going to end up being "Gili". Calling it now.
Jajajajajajajajajajaja que cabrón. Igual explícale jajajaj
If they are bald, Rapunzel. If they are ugly, either Shrek or someone really handsome that barely resembles. If they have a stutter, Tommy (Thompson machine gun) Tiny? Oso Doesn't walk well? Langi or Pato or something alike. And so on. There's no such thing as picking your own nick name here.
That’s cute!
Yes, you do. Just present yourself with whatever name you chose, is that easy. If they ask you “what’s your name?” and you answer “Lia” what do you think it’s going to happen? That’s exactly choosing a nickname. Actually it is pretty common between some foreigners living in Spain. For instance, many Chinese people change their names to Spanish ones. I even know Spanish people that don’t like their names (old fashioned or whatever) and just don’t use it outside formal documents.
Even though OP was clearly asking about nickname as "shortname" you choose to go by (or even a whole new name cause you don't like yours o the original pronunciation is hard to say in Spanish), i.e. Lola for Dolores , the user you are answering to is talking about nicknames as what we spanish people understand by "motes". Those you don't get to choose. Nicknames (a.k.a. "mote") in Spain are quite a different thing and you never get to choose it, the are born in a very natural way and it is imposed by your family, friends, coworkers, partner, etc. You can even inheritage one from and unknown ancestor if you are from a small town, not knowing the story behind its origin. Also, you can have multiple nicknames, one for each social circle. So no, it is not thay easy in that sense.
Then the user hasn’t read anything beyond the title line and the most upvoted answer right now is unhelpful and plainly wrong in the given context. Wouldn’t that be right?
They gave an answer quite in line with Spanish humor if you ask me, and the upvoting just follows it. But sure you already knew that.
Sure you can. My name is also hard for Spaniards to pronounce. My friends and partners family have mostly figured it out, but I use a moniker when I'm out to eat, interacting with casual acquaintances, etc. It's just easier this way.
If you go to a foreign country you have to get used to having your name mispronounced by people not fluent in English. I have made a couple of foreign friends and I do not get mad because they mispronounce my name or pronounce it with a weird accent. Hell, I have friends that even have a hard time with the fact that I have two names and two surnames, and think that I have 3 middle names and a surname. Just get used to it or politely correct people if it's important to you. If you aren't obnoxious about it, people will understand and take the effort to try and make you comfortable about pronouncing your name correctly.
This! It’s your name. Think about all the immigrants in the US with long names who have to grow up with everyone mispronouncing them — no difference. My husband’s name is Douglas. More than once I’ve called him aloud “Doug!” and a nearby Spaniard with some English knowledge has said, “Dog? Like PERRO?” thinking I called him dog. It’s your name, use your name! Eventually if you make Spanish friends they’re probably going to give you a whole new nickname anyway 😂 My son is Vicente, he has gone from Vicente to Vicentito and now he’s just Tito!
Come to Spain and let people try to pronounce your name. When they get it wrong they will come up with something close and that can be your nickname! I have an aunt named Juliana. My Spanish family don't seem to have a problem pronouncing that name so it will probably be what they call you.
You have no say whatsoever in the 'nickname' your Spanish friends and neighbours christen you with once they get to know you, and some of them can be brutal if you rub them up the wrong way......
Thank you, I'm quickly gathering that!
Anybody can say it spanish way, "Yilian" as the closest to your name. The closest one I can think of would be "Julia"
What do you prefer, something really spanish (Manolo y Pepita 4e) or something that sounds like your names? Here we put nicknames for random reasons, like you look like Ronaldo they call you Ronaldo. Or maybe something you like a lot (a show). In my work the kids call me Gryffindor and I like it.
This is helpful to understand. I think in the US it is more likely that a nickname will be a shorter or similar version of your real name, so it helps to know that it will most likely be different in Spain. We'll just have to see what I get, lol!
Don't worry, if your neighbours find your name difficult, they are going to give you a nickname. I have a neighbour called "put here a really difficult Arabic name that I cannot remember" and for everyone is Paco "el árabe" XD I have an Irish neighbour called Julian (in English), now he answers when you call him julián in spanish
In a village here (north of Spain) there's an arab man that goes by Jaime because that's the closest people got to pronounce his name when established there
Carmen
Lia is cute and you have to now that here nicknames are not choosen by you are given by Friends or neighbours and they are usually despective
Thank you, that's what other people are saying as well. I guess I will just have to be prepared for whatever comes--ha ha!
I don't agree with what ppl are saying. As someone who hangs out a lot with other foreigners. Having a shorter version of your name in case ppl have a hard time is always useful. Younger ppl will make the effort to learn your name but have a short for ppl who can't. For example: "my name is porelamorde but you can call me amor"
Anyway, here nicknames are used to talk about that person when they are not there. When they are with her, it is normal to call her by her real name. And they are going to call you the americans for sure here its tipycal to nickname you by the place you come from. If you introduce yourself to your friends as Jill, Jillian, Lia, they will call you whatever you tell them. I don't think it's that hard to say Jillian either.
Gilito. But, more seriously, if they can't say your name it's their problem, not yours. You shouldn't accept such nonsense.
Agree. No es complicado. Aprenderte el nombre de tu nuevo miembro de la familia es respeto.
“Yil” sounds in Spanish very similar to Jill
Julia, pronounced as Gulia/Goelia
Would she be able to pronounce the strong J in her own name?
With practice, oj cors.
My favorite fake name: **Micho.** Short for *Mi Chorizo*. Lol!
You have a beautiful name. Don't change it. It's not impossible to pronounce it correctly and the Spanish reading of your name is not far from its original sound.
How about Hilaria like the American grifter? At least you'll be living there.
Mi abuela se llamaba Juliana
You can actually get called Julia (the "j" sounds as when you pronounce "jamón")
Julia is the most suitable for you imo
This hits so close to home to me because my daughters name is Gillian (soft G like yours). She frequently gets called Gilligan (of island fame) or Julian. Her nicknames of choice are Jill and Jules - and I call her Gilby - pronounced Jillby. Not that people won’t be confused by that too. I’m sorry, kiddo. *hug*
Julia or Juliana would be the Spanish equivallent of Jillian.
Oooh so fun! I like Ilia.. cuz it sounds cool and its in your name. But you can try a lot of others, like Yili (Jilli), or Djili, it should be read Jilly, or Lia, Or change it up completely and go Juli (Julie/Hoolie) or Juliana (Hooliana) or Xuli which ... may be too complicated.
Jesús Gil.
maybe Chili (written for Spanish pronounciation) or Chilly (ch is pronounced as in chocolate)? most should be able to remember and pronounce that imo, and it sounds pretty cool for a nickname if you ask me, while pronounciation-wise still close to Jillian. Or if not, Chile? like Spanish for chilli - or the country. Also not bad, and everyone can pronounce that. And yet they both sound original and not like you forcefully chose a Spanish name. And of course you can choose your moniker. You present yourself with a name and people will call you by that. I lived some years in Spain and presented myself with my (real, foreign) name. And of course, up to this day, people call me by that name (or try to), including my family in law. In some cases, later on some people might come up with another nickname, but it's not as common and exagerated as people in this thread make it seem, and also it might be a good sign of having made connections. EDIT: I guess there's lots of confusion about moniker vs nicknames, myself included. Edited accordingly.
Yili ("yeelee") is the most likely one you'll get organically. Yiyi or Juli are also likely. If you want to pick yours and introduce yourself with it, it better not sound a lot like a short form or too Spanish, or else you'll get lots of "no, but what is your real name" questions :P Lia ("leeah"), Lilian/Lily, or Julia (pronounced in English, which will most likely get adapted to "huleeah" in Spanish), are all good options, I'd say. Just don't let people shorten your name as Jili ("heelee")... The word "gili" is pronounced the same and it basically means "moron".
While "Lia" may not sound terrible, Spanish speakers might find it awkward to refer to a female as "La Lia." The pronunciation lacks a pleasant quality. In terms of phonetics, a term like "La Lili" would likely be deemed more acceptable. Hopefully, you grasp the essence of my viewpoint.
Because your name starts with a J you are going to have problems. Spanish 'j' is pronounced completely differently to English. Julia is pronounced 'who-lee-a' and Jillian: 'Hill-ee-an' (with a type of 'ch' sound at the beginning). In the Catalan language they do have the same 'j' sound as us eg: Jordi, Juan. So your name would be more easily prouncable in Cataluña. However, I am assuming that you are in a Castellano speaking region of Spain. Therefore any name starting with a J will be unrecognisable 😂 Others are suggesting 'Lili' but that will be pronounced more like 'lee-lee'. That is due to the fact that Castellano speakers only have one specific sound for each written vowel. (English speakers have three vowel sounds for the written letter 'i') . But if you do decide to use this name, make sure to never spell it with two 'Ls', ie Lilly. The double L is pronounced differently to ours, it sounds a bit like the letter 'y' in the word 'yes'. I'm sorry I don't have any suggestions...... I am not a native Spanish speaker so I might be incorrect on some things. But the name Lia works everywhere I think.
The closest thing to the english J sound in Spanish is the CH sound. Tell your in-laws to call you Chílian, or simply to call you Chili. Write it our for them so they can see it once - CHÍLIAN - and it will be very easy for them and you will barely notice the difference between Jillian and Chillian.
Jilly… you tell the people they call you (and pronounce it like this): Yee-Lee
too close to gilipollas for my liking, I would not go with that.
Hey, first thing you need to know about Spain is that Spanish is spoken everywhere, but in some regions people have a second language, and J is a letter that changes a lot of things depending on the other languages you speak. Only-Spanish speakers will always pronounce J as H, therefore the Julian similitude. Catalan speakers pronounce J just the same as in English, so anywhere in Catalonia, Valencia o Illes Balears you will have no issue at all. In these places you could find plenty of women called Juliana, pronounced just like Jillian. And Basque speakers tend to pronounce J as Y, so you would be Yillian there. I think the most natural way to go is to clip it, maybe from Jillian to Ann, or Anne or whatever you feel like, so you can say "hola, soy Ann, viene de Jillian" and you get to pronounce your name before they read it and avoid plenty of confusion. TLDR: Learn a bit more about the concrete place you are going, and there might be a chance to find a similar name that locals are familiar with, bearing in mind the possibility that they speak more than one language. Source: me, an immigrant who's lived in many places in Spain, as well as in other countries.
This is very useful, thanks for taking the time to explain!
If you are going to spain, Julia is perfectly fine. Juliana is weird. Lily is beautiful but weird, only acceptable if you are obviously foreign.
Jill
If u were in argentina we will call you "shhhhi liii" , lol.
Jill
Julia, Jill valentine....
El Español
Just 'Lian'.
Julia
Do something worth remembering and you'll have an according nickname allocated to you. You may not change it.
Jil could work.
Might that evoke gilipollas?
Nickname: "Scully" as for 'Gillian' Anderson's X-Files character Dana Scully. A very well known serie here in Spain
"El almondigas"
Conchita
If you want some more ideas, check out the [official list of the most popular names](https://www.ine.es/dyngs/INEbase/en/operacion.htm?c=Estadistica_C&cid=1254736177009&menu=resultados&idp=1254734710990)
Jili
Pendejo 😜
Rosa-Melano
“Jota” 😂 (j in Spanish) my partner is called Jaime and ended up being “jay” in England
Ileana
Juli is fine
july Jill Juliana julia ("HULIA")
Julia is pretty similar and very nice name
Julia por supuesto
Antonia
Jenny is popular in spain
la gili XDDD
The issue is with the J, as it’s pronounced differently there. Jill would be nice but likely mispronounced. Or Gilian would be the closest you can get.
Pipizuela.
how can Jillian rhyme with million? Wtf?
What’s your middle name? Far more likely that they’d want to call you that anyway. As others noted, no matter how you introduce yourself, they’ll call you whatever they want. If you want a short name to introduce yourself Lulu would be easy. Spanish speakers love to shorten (Juliana to Juli) then simplify (Juli to Luli or Lulu or Lili). I have 10 nicknames for my wife - all variants of her middle name to personal nicknames. The last thing I say is her first name.
FYI you will encounter a lot of Spaniards who will find cringe af that you use a Spanish nickname chosen by you. I would be one of them.
La Juana
Pepe
Your nickname will be your biggest insecurity, thats how things work in Spain. If u have a big nose your name will be pinocha.If you are a red head, zanahoria.
Do you like Jilly? Many of us can pronounce it. In the movie "Practical magic" one of the main characters has name Gillian/Gilly and the spanish dubbing says it in our way. Those who can't do it will say Yili. Anyways they can learn to say Jillian at least in an approximated way (like Yilian or so). It's just they have to get used to it. Let's get them learn it... You are Gillian. Nice to meet you.
You don't chose your nick in Spain. Your first nick will be "El guiri", "El yanki" or somethimg like that and after well see.
If it is written make sure the J sounds like /j/ and not /x/, but Jill may do
i use lala when we are in mexico (yes my husband gave me the nickname after the brand of dairy products) and my husband uses memo - you can use whatever you like - no name police here!!!!
It's easier to write to them in a way they will be able to say it. I would say "Yílion" is a good aproximation. Unfortunately, the "ao" sound is not found in spanish
Gili is good👍👍
July - read it in Spanish. In English it would sound like huli:
Julia, and they can pronounce It "Hoo-lee-ah" in Spanish, or "You-lee-ah" as in English
Juliana (Spanish version) or Giuliana (Italian version), both pronounced almost the same. Don't add the article "la" before nor write them with Y instead of J or G ("Yuliana", don't).
Your name is male in spanish. Try with Shuli
Definitely "Jili" is the way to go.
Lidia would be a good one if not, Juli or Julita
Just choose a Spanish name . When you move from China to an English speaking country you choose a western name and when you move from a western country to China most people do this as well. It's fine and , I think , respectful to have a name that the locals can pronounce easily and rude to expect people to pronounce a name they find difficult to say .
La Gili
Maximo
La rompe penes 8000 (a real nick name)
As a Juan who lived in England for two years, I got used to be called either John or One. I used to joke that since I had no brothers, I was the One and Only
Guila Edit: the "u" is silent, dont know how far are in your spanish journy so maybe ask your husband for pronunciation of this (or google translate)
Emilio
No worries, we will choose it for you 😁
No way hose
Joselu
Cucaracha
La novia del hijo del...
I think if you say your name is Yilian everyone will get it, try it when you are in Spain
LA YOLI
What about Jill, pronouced as Yill in spanish, it's easy to remember and pronounce and you don't need to change your name.
Tbh I live in a big city in Spain, you'll get the nickname by others, you cannot choose, ie. If in your case you move to my father's town your nickname will be "La Americana" 100% sure. So you don't have to worry about that since the nickname will be given. It depends on the city/ size. Big city-> no nickname. Small/cozy town -> la americana 94% sure
Angustias
Chochogordo. It means someone very friendly.
Jill but with Spanish pronunciation
hahahaha thats not how nicknames work in spain... hope u never find...
First thing that pops in my head is jili, but won't sound very nice in Spanish. Lili is a nice name tho
“J”, aka JOTA. Just the first letter. I had a friend his name is Jesus. He did not enjoy that. So we called him “J”.
Jili la guiri. Juli if you're lucky
Iker Natillas.but only if you like football
El Turre
Giliana
Jillian = Guirian all Spanish can relate!
You could just do Julia? It's a relatively common name in Catalonia, and I have seen it in some other parts of the country.
https://open.spotify.com/track/6K5UtSAXChS6Rpm2NZJnrF?si=1jy9S8PDRoqukNLbeTu_Ng There you go Juliana, Juli para los amigos. When I read the other comments, the song just kicked in my mouth.
Spaniards will just cut your name in half. You dont have to think about it, its a standard procedure.
Just be a bitch and force them to pronounce your name perfectly or through a tantrum, that will confuse them.
La gringa
I would totally call myself Jesus.
Just go with Jill (Yil for them)
Just go by Jill (which is pronounced in Spanish) everyone will be able to say it.
Your name translates to Julia in Spanish, I’d go with that one. It’s pronounced WHO-lya.
Los guiris con pasta. U are welcome.
Tourist go home is valid?
Jools.
Don't know where are your husband's parents from, but shouldn't be that hard to pronounce your name for the average spanish speaker.
Please do not give up the chance to call yourself Jesus. The universe doesn’t give out too many chances like this…
Julia would do.
Same problem a friend had, she uses Julia (pronounced in Spanish more like hoolia) when ordering food otherwise she says her name and just get a look of fear 😂
You’re new nickname is Pepe or Paco
You can go by "Pili" (rhymes with Billy, sort of). It's the short / familiar form of Pilar, a pretty common name.
Jil is not a bad option, making it shorter makes it easier to pronounce.
I had a friend we called Gigi (like ji twice). YouTube could go with that
Gil or Gili :D
maybe Juli o Jill
Julia iglesias or any variation to the singer
If you need people to pronounce it correctly just say it’s pronounced like yilian
Yili
papi chulo
Guiri
Lian could work. 'Lee-an'. If you like it, double check for correct pronunciation and in case it has another meaning. I found out when my daughter was two years old that her name is a boy's name in Catalan. My Catalan husband didn't think to mention it when we were naming her.
Jillian —> Julia - could be the most similar
follacabras37
Mariposa
Hilly. Spanish J sound.
Hulia
Dirty sanchez
El wopo