Lindsay de Sausmarez: People have been saying my name wrong for years
Deputy Lindsay de Sausmarez says it's 'hilarious' that after years in the States, people still don't realise they have been getting her name wrong.
One of Guernsey's senior politicians has told ITV News that people have been mispronouncing her name for years, and she finds it "hilarious" no one has ever picked up on the mistake.
Deputy Lindsay de Sausmarez, the President of the Environment & Infrastructure Committee, says her surname should be pronounced with a hard 'z' sound at the end, rather than a silent 'z' as many in Guernsey believe.
During broadcast interviews, reporters often ask guests to introduce themselves once the recording has started - this is so they and their colleagues in the studio have something to refer back to in order to ensure the guest's name is said correctly.
Despite having met the Deputy on numerous occasions since she was elected to the States in 2016, our reporter Roisin Gauson did as any journalist should and asked her for her name and job title - only this time she picked up something she hadn't previously noticed, the hard 'z' in De Sausmarez.
When asked to confirm that, the Deputy said: "I've done that every single time I've ever been asked [for my name]... and it's hilarious the conversion rate is zero."
Deputy de Sausmarez said even she spent many years getting it wrong: "It's funny - I grew up mispronouncing it like everyone else [with a silent 'z'], but it turns out that's not how it is meant to be pronounced."
"To be honest, I'm very relaxed about it. I don't care how you do it - but I think the older generation has a thing about it."
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