Hotham to Killanin
The archaic pronunciation of surnames has not always developed at the same pace as our language, and can cause confusion. The table below gives guidance on the pronunciation of a selection of English surnames - establishing the traditional pronunciation of a surname will ensure that you do not cause offence.
| Surname | Pronunciation |
| Hotham | Huth-am |
| Housman | House-man |
| Howick | Hoyk |
| Hugessen | Hu-ges-son (hard 'g') |
| Huth | Hooth |
| Hylton | Hilton |
| Iddesleigh | Idd-sli |
| Ikerrin | I-kerrin |
| Iliffe | I-liffe |
| Inchiquin | Inch-quin |
| Inchrye | Inch-rye |
| Inchyra | Inch-eye-ra |
| Inge | Ing |
| Ingestre | Ingustry (like 'industry') |
| Inglis | Ingles or as spelt |
| Inigo | Inni-go |
| Innes | Inniss |
| Inveraray | Inver-air-a |
| Ionides | Ion-ee-diz |
| Isham | I-sham |
| Iveagh | I-va |
| Jervis | As spelt or Jarvis |
| Jervoise | Jervis |
| Jocelyn | Josslin |
| Jolliffe | Joll-iff |
| Kaberry | Kay-berry |
| Kavenagh | Kavan-a |
| Kekewich | Keck-which |
| Keighley | Keith-li |
| Kemeys | Kemmis |
| Kennard | Ken-ard |
| Kenyon | Ken-yon |
| Ker, Kerr | Car or Cur |
| Keynes | Kaynes |
| Killanin | Kil-lah-nin |
Register for updates
Register here to receive our regular newsletter, exclusive offers and updates on new Debrett’s initiatives.
Register here nowCompetition
