Same Names With Different Spellings Are Messing With Our Minds

Steven or Stephen?

Cathy or Kathy?

Alan or Allen?

These are just a handful of names that can be spelled differently. Sure, there may be plenty of reasons why different letters are employed to create the exact same sounds, but we don’t know what any of them are. Maybe it's a way to determine desirability or maybe it's a way to change our perception. Who really knows?

Debra or Deborah?

Marc or Mark?

Cheryl or Sheryl?

The list goes on and on. So while Jarrod may look better than Jared, we can't help but wonder if Clare has more cache than Claire and Sara is zippier than Sarah. (The "h" makes a difference. Just ask George Costanza.)

Derek or Derrick?

Sydney or Sidney?

Michele or Michelle?

Life is already full of tough choices, so why do we have to make it even tougher trying to figure out whether to use a “y” or an “i," an "a" or an "e" or one "l" versus two?

Jeff or Geoff?

Lindsay or Lindsey?

Ashley or Ashleigh…or Ashlee?

Can you think of other names with multiple spellings? Why did you choose to spell your child’s name the way you do? Was it religious? Was it to be different? Did you just like how it looked better in print?