The Baby Name Wizard

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Comments and insights on the name Béla: | Edit

The sound represented by the letter é in Hungarian (IPA /e/*) only occurs in English as part of a diphthong, so y'all can't help it, but you're pronouncing this name wrong. :-)
Roughly, it's BAY-law. You'll be closer if you can omit the 'y' and 'w'.
For the increasing number of girls saddled with Bela as an alternate spelling of Bella, all I can suggest is to make sure to leave off the acute accent mark.

*Darn thing doesn't let me use square brackets, which are the correct thing to use for International Phonetic Alphabet spellings.

Personal experiences with the name Béla: | Edit

My name is Bela.
Pronounced like Bella.
I'm a girl. Everybody pronounces my name right. MOST of the time. haha

Nicknames for Béla: | Edit

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Meanings and history of the name Béla: | Edit

Hungarian (ALWAYS masculine) name, with several possible origins: a diminutive of the Hungarian word "bél" ('insides')*; a Turkic borrowing based on a word meaning 'distinguished'; or a diminutive of a Slavic name in Bel- (such as Beloslav). It was the name of several kings of Hungary; the most notable was the fourth of this name, who had the misfortune of being on the throne when the Mongols invaded in 1241.

*In the early (10th-11th century) records of the names of Hungarians, any everyday word (or phrase) was fair game for use as a name: "seed", "wolf", "forest", "doesn't live", "Friday", and so on.

Famous real-life people named Béla: | Edit

Bela Lugosi, "Dracula" actor
Bela Bartok, composer
Bela Fleck, bluegrass musician
Bela Phinney Magicneering actress

Béla in song, story & screen: | Edit

"Béla Lugosi's Dead," Bauhaus song