Poster showing 6 names and their phonetic pronunciation or how they are written in a native language. Hamza (Arabic spelling). Thuy (Twee). Arjun (Er-june). Sakura (Japanese hiragana spelling). Hermione (Her-my-oh-nee). Nilay (Knee-lie).

The Mosaic Network, which represents the University of Sydney’s culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) community, has launched the Say My Name campaign to encourage all staff and students to understand the importance of saying a name they haven’t said before.

For many, identity is tightly bound up in our names and could reflect our family history, mother tongue or cultural and ethnic backgrounds.

The campaign aims to make everyone feel proud of the diversity of cultures, languages and lived experience on campus. It’s a key step to making the university community more inclusive and can make someone feel valued and respected.

What you can do

  • Do your best to pronounce someone else’s name
  • Help others pronounce your name in your email signature or professional profile
    • Include the phonetic pronunciation
    • Include a link to an audio recording
    • If you have a name in another language, you can include the script for your name
    • If you speak other languages, you could list them too

Examples

  • Naomi Koh Belic 許佳丽
  • Nemone Goonasekera (Pronounced Neh-mo-ni Gu-ne-say-kara)
  • Corinne Caillaud (Pronounced Korin Kayo, listen), Je parle Français
  • Sally Sitou 陈莎莉

Most importantly, have a go!

To find out more about the Mosaic Network or their Say My Name campaign, contact mosaic.network@sydney.edu.au.

You can also find out more about what the University of Sydney is doing for their CALD staff and students in their Athena Swan Bronze action plan.