A Newborn Was Named ‘Glhynnyl Hylhyr Yzzyghyl.’ We Asked the Family Why.

Baby in Philippines Is Named Glhynnyl Hylhyr Yzzyghyl

Forget the most popular baby names, it seems like people are now constantly pushing the boundaries of naming conventions with their newborns. 

Last year, the pandemic triggered a wave of coronavirus-inspired baby names. Then came Elon Musk’s baby, which sent the internet into a frenzy about how exactly X Æ A-12 should roll off the tongue. Phonetically counter-intuitive names may have people struggling with pronunciation, but awkward social interactions are no deterrence for creative parents seeking unique names for their babies. The latest addition to the club is a newborn in the Philippines whose given name has zero vowels: Glhynnyl Hylhyr Yzzyghyl.

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Born on April 27 in Cotabato province, the baby boy’s arrival was celebrated on Facebook by Yuleses Romneck Cequiña Referente, a family friend, along with a photo of the newborn’s birth certificate.

“Welcome to the amazing world, Glhynnyl Hylhyr Yzzyghyl M. Buscato,” Referente wrote in a post that has since gone viral, garnering over 28,000 Facebook reactions and 49,000 shares as of writing.

The unique name came from the baby’s granduncle, 25-year-old college student Raugyl Ferolin Estrera, who also came up with the very appropriate nickname, Consonant. 

“It took me weeks to formulate the name of my grandson and it was like a trial and error because it was hard at first,” Estrera told VICE, adding that he had come up with lots of other names.

The baby’s parents eventually decided on the first name Glhynnyl Hylhyr Yzzyghyl, which they thought was “bizarre” yet “beautiful,” said Estrera.

He said the name was “amazingly derived” by taking a few letters from different family members’ names. For example, in “Glhynnyl,” the letters G and N come from Consonant’s mother Geraldine, while N, Y, and L were taken from the baby’s grandmother Joralyn.

Baby in Philippines Is Named Glhynnyl Hylhyr Yzzyghyl
Photo: Courtesy of Raugyl Ferolin Estrera

Estrera explained that he replaced vowels with the letter Y to pay tribute to a family naming pattern. He and his siblings all have names with the letters Y and L, like Joralyn, Jeoradyl, and Jerrylyl. 

The seemingly random string of consonants seems destined for confusion from the outset. Estrera told GMA News that the baby’s birth certificate had to be reprinted because the administrator spelled it wrong the first time.

Consonant’s name is quickly polarizing the crowd on social media. While some are quick to mock the name Glhynnyl Hylhyr Yzzyghyl for looking like gibberish, others appreciate the meaning behind it. 

Baby in Philippines Is Named Glhynnyl Hylhyr Yzzyghyl
Photo: Courtesy of Raugyl Ferolin Estrera

Some people also imagined how Consonant would have to tell his dumbfounded kindergarten teachers the correct pronunciation of his first name.

So, to save Consonant’s future acquaintances from any embarrassment, Estrera answered our biggest question: How exactly do you pronounce Glhynnyl Hylhyr Yzzyghyl? You can say it like “Glinil Hayler Izihil,” he said. 

A seasoned baby-namer, Estrera previously came up with names for other babies in the family, such as Precious Faith and Reu Devinne Ci.

“I am really fascinated [with] giving names in the family,” he said.

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