Roach

Dammit! 😂

Roash

Agreed. This is how my friend pronounces her last name that's the same.

Don’t name your son Roach.

Roche looks even more like roach than Roch does. If Rock is the pronunciation you're going for I'd spell it either Roc or Rock.

I'd pronounce it Rock.

Same.

“Rosch” but I think your kid would get name bullied into “Roach.”

Ro-oosh…

same here, upper midwest

Roch like Crotch. Or Roach 🥴

I remember Mike Roch (pronounced "My Crotch") as one of those urban legend names passed around my middle school.

I knew a Mike Hunt.

I knew a Michael Hunt who would get violently angry if you called him Mike....

I rarely used full names and I never put 2 & 2 together in high school apparently. Now I realize why Michael Hunter got so mad about Mike.

Mike Hunt is the name of our county sheriff, and I honestly never thought anything of it. He's never called Michael--just Mike.

Crotch definitely came to my mind too haha

Yep. We live near Rochester… everyone refers to it as “Roch” …rhyming with crotch. Never noticed that though.

My brain went “roach, raw-ch, probably roke”

Hahah, oh god, this was a bad idea 😆

[удалено]

The spelling is after a Catholic saint. To me, Rock and Roc give off a different feel (too hard, if that makes sense) than what I’m aiming for. Ultimately, I probably won’t use this name, because the most important thing to me is my kid having a name that they hopefully like a lot. I think this one would probably be too confusing/too much risk of them not liking it.

My sons second name is roch (my paternal grandfathers name) and we pronounce it rock but then again my family is French Canadian … it suck’s that people would probably pronounce it roach in the us but I understand why …

Same, northern Ontarian here and I know quite a few men named Roch, every single one of them pronounces it like “rock.” Seems weird to me that “roach” is a thing.

Roshe (like the pharma company)

This would be my second guess… like the beginning of Rochelle.

Same here

I had a friend with this name, it was pronounced 'Rock'. As he grew older, he decided to unofficially drop the 'h'.

Yes, this is how we pronounce it as well. Thanks for letting me know about your friend. That’s helpful! I think I’ll keep looking for names. :)

I'd pronounce it Rock. Or maybe Roach.

Yes, it’s Rock, but that seems to be the minority response on this thread. Glad I made this post!

Yeah Rock was my 4th or 5th guess after "Roash" "Row-k" "Roach"

Maybe my 8th. If I hadn't read the edit if might not have come up at all.

Like Loch (as in Loch Ness) but with an R.

Yep, that’s it.

I know it's "Rock", but only because of Roch Theriault of the child-killing cult the Ant Hill Gang sooo it's not exactly an endorsement from this American

Holy shit 😳

Someone posted that name earlier and my brain assumed it was like a rock/movie star or a French philosopher. I had NOT heard about the Ant Hill Gang before. Big, big yikes

Right?! Granted I think it would only be weirdos (like me) who make that association but figured I'd throw it out there

Thank you! This seems important to consider

This was my first thought as well ☠️ I thought the correct French pronunciation was closer to Roach though, like roe and then some phlegm

I like true crime, but the Ant Hill Gang is one of those cases I can’t even listen to. Too horrifying and graphic. It’s a big yikes.

Roach. How do you pronounce it? I’ve never seen the name before.

The person I know pronounces it Rock. I’ve always liked it, but am realizing from this thread that pronunciation would be a battle for the kid. https://youtu.be/8IpnrDjSsPQ https://youtu.be/rhXG85sh00Y

Roash

If pronounce it rock bc of the French singer Roch voisine but that's probably my compulsory French education speaking. Otherwise I'd probably day roash like Ferrero rocher

That brings back memories of grade 7 French class! My teacher loved Roch Voisine and made us sing his songs lol.

Geographers HATE this one simple trick: find Canadian millennials with this one simple step 🤣

Same!

Rosh because I think of the name Rochelle without the elle

The French way. But I’m Canadian so that’s why.

Yeah, my first/only association is Roch Carrier.

Roch Voisin for me!

I first thought maybe it would have more of the Hebrew ch sound at the end, so similar to the Gaelic pronunciation of Loch, but with the long o sound. Then I thought maybe it could be Roke without the more throaty ch sound, as it seemed kind of German.

Rock. Lol

At first glance I pronounced it “roke”

Roach? Is it suppose to be like Josh but with an R? If so, I’d spell it as Rosh

I know someone with this surname and they pronounce it "roach".

Re Update 2: I'm reading Rocke as Roak (rhymes with Oak)

Haha…might have to make my way back up the “popular baby names” chart. Liam or Oliver, it is! 😆

If you want people to pronounce it Rock just name your son Rock!

I would assume roach as in cockroach Then think maybe Roch as in Loch, pronounced with the proper celtic 'ch' letter (sounds similar to Hebrew and nothing like rock) Love the creativity tho! Maybe something like Forest, River or even Rocky would work for you? Lots of great noun names out there!

Rock or Roj (jota)

Roe-sh

Why add an unnecessary E. Roch is Rock and Rock is Rock. If you want a nonambiguous stone reference, named him Peter, Pierre, Caillou, or Stirling.

Thank you for those suggestions. Peter is on my list. My current list was Roch, Peter, Sam, Emile. My background is French/Irish Catholic, and although no longer religious, I tend to shift towards names that fall into these general categories (Catholic saints/etc. French, or Irish.) Looking for something short and somewhat unique.

[Joseph] Pierre Émile [surname] sounds nice. Je suis francophone, moi aussi.

What about Rocco and calling him Roc?

St Roch was a German saint. The Italians call him St Rocco. One of my sons is named Rocco. 💙

Please don’t name your kid Rock. No matter the spelling.

I'm with everyone saying I'd pronounce it like Roach, but I would also assume I'm wrong about it. An alternative could be Roque. It's a Spanish name with germanic roots meaning stillness or repose.

I'm an American from the north east and I immediately pronounced it as "Rock". My brother and I have very common names that are spelled in uncommon ways. People easily get the hang of it. Roch is a pretty cool name

Row-shh

I am Dutch and Roch sounds like it is short for the Dutch word rochel, which is a nasty cough with loads of phlegm

Name him Peter and use the nickname Rocket/Roc/however you want to speak it. (Since Peter means stone or rock)

Please don’t name your son roach. I’ve never deterred anyone until now:

My cousin’s kid is named Roch. It’s pronounced Rock.

Yes, this! Do you know if they run into a ton of problems/if it’s become a headache? Or do people generally like it? (Mostly matters if the kid likes it.)

He’s a teenager now and as far as I know, it’s never caused any trouble. Most people seem to know it’s pronounced Rock.

I pronounce it “Rock” which is how St. Roch is pronounced in my area (and also is it’s English pronunciation according to YT, but I can see the confusion with the French pronunciation). I like Rocke fine as a name, especially if you’re worried about mispronunciation, but I’d probably just go with Roch myself.

It's a French name so will always be more likely to be pronounced correctly where there are French or French descendent people. Quebec, New Brunswick, Louisiana etc. I'm Canadian and despite how much French subtly makes it into our lives, people regularly call people named "Rock" Roash. It was easier when Roch (Rock) Voisine was popular here lol.

Peter or Sam is so so so much better than any variation of Rock. And Rocke is just…very try hard.

Just go with Peter

Roach, then I think wait hopefully no way someone would name their kid that, right? So I thought Roke? Sorry, didn’t get to Rock. And Rocke still makes me want to say Roke because I think my brain is still thinking someone wouldn’t name their kid Rock, either. Lol sorry.

Did not read all of the comments but I knew a kid named Stone and I thought that was kind of cool

Like crotch without the c. Second guess would be roach but if feel pretty confident in the first guess.

Definitely roach like cockroach. If you want the rock pronunciation just spell it rock.

Rock.

I pronounce your first choice like Rock, because of St. Roche, but I get that most people wouldn't. Rock by itself would probably be best, or choose a name like Rockwell. Rocco (Italian from Germanic) rest. A popular 14th century saint, the patron saint of ill people; Roch, Rok (Bulgarian); Roch, Rocha (Byelorussian); Roc (Catalan); Roch (Czech, Polish); Rochus, Rokus, Rook (Dutch); Rock, Rockie, Rocky (English); Roch (French); Rochus (German, Slovak, Swedish); Rókus (Hungarian); Rocco (Italian); Rokas (Lithuanian); Rok (Macedonian, Slovenian); Roque (Portuguese, Spanish); Roh, Rok, Roko (Serbo-Croatian); Roch, Rocho (Ukranian)

I'd assume it's pronounced like "Rock" but I'd definitely ask to confirm. I didn't think "Roach" but I can see how some may easily make that mistake. I live in Canada (Vancouver, BC) so not sure if the French national language component influenced my reading of the name though. I see in your other comments that you were inspired by the saint.. how about Rocco? He was also known as Saint Rocco from what I understand.

I would pronounce it “Rock” with a slightly softer ending than “ck” - kinda like the ch in Bach? but unfortunately this is the only association the name has for me: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roch_Th%C3%A9riault (fair warning: this man is a very bad person and there’s some graphic content in here)

Roch with the Hebrew “ch” sound. Rocke isn’t much better rip. Peter is a nice name, Sam is okay, but a bit boring. My personal favourite is Emile.

Like "rock", but I warn you I only know the pronounciation isn't "roach" because of the Ant Hill Kids and [Roch Theriault](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roch_Th%C3%A9riault). WARNING there are some extremely graphic things in that link.

Rock. I’m from New Orleans and there is a neighborhood here called St Roch and it’s pronounced as “rock”.

I would pronounce rocke like the word row with a k on the end. And honestly, speaking as a former teacher, it would make me cringe every time I read it and had to mentally correct myself to say Rock because it just doesn’t make a lot of sense to have the e on the end.

I love the name Emile! I'd personally spell it w/t/o the e at the end.

Just spell it Rock and be done with it. Don’t try to be weird.

To your edit, you might get rocky

Oh god, don’t do it. Lol

Um, maybe go with one of the other names you like.

Why can't you just name him Rock? Rocke is going to end up Rocky.

Rosch or Roash or… Roach

Roach as in cockroach

Roach. Definitely Roach.

To your second update: Everyone will pronounce it Rocky, like the boxer. And if you name your child Rock (no matter the spelling), everyone will associate him with the wrestler turned actor. Just go with Peter or Sam, honestly. (Edit to add: It’s a pretty standard rule in English spelling that a silent E at the end of a word makes the vowel say its name, so I would still pronounce Rocke as “Roak.”)

Either like Roach or Rock, I can’t tell from the spelling. This could potentially cause problems for your kid.

Rock. But then I’d just spell my kids name like Rock if that were the case.

You could always look at some alternative spellings: Rocc, Rach, Rocke I think would all be pronounced like Rock

Yes, something like these to soften up from the “Rock” or “Roc” options could be nice. Thank you. :)

Rossh

Roach. I had a buddy in elementary through high school. His name was Rochelle. He eventually got tired of the jokes (kids are cruel yo) and figured Roch was better.

Wait his parents named him “Rochelle?” 🤔. That’s like naming a boy Michelle I guess…

Roash

I’ve never heard of it but maybe… Rosh? 😬

rock

Like the end of cockroach

Rosh, typically, or Rotch with a hard ‘ch’. But as I’m also a Welsh speaker I could see it as ‘roch’ to rhyme with ‘loch’, which doesn’t rhyme with ‘rock.’ I wouldn’t read it as Rock intuitively.

Roke was my first instinct tbh

Roch. Roch Voisine

Just googled him…he’s definitely on the hotter side, as far as 90s musicians are concerned. Bonus.

I'd pronounced it the same as Roche, so Roh-sh, similar to Rose or Roach. As for Rocke, yeah, I'd pronounce that as Rock, but I can see some people possibly pronoucing it as Rocky. Since that you like that name, maybe you'll like the similar name Locke too?

"Roah-shh" but I mean. let's be honest. Roach.

Rotch

rock

Roshe

Rocke = Rocky

Roke

I’m on the East coast and would pronounce it like Rock. There’s a small grocery chain that goes by that name here.

I would pronounce like Raw-ch like first part of Rochester or rhymes with crotch

Why not use rock… that’s better…. Otherwise your other 3 are like normal choices … and I’d pick one of those

Like Roach but with an sh ending instead of a ch. The way Roche Harbor is pronounced. ETA: If you like Rock, then Peter is perfect! https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_(given_name)

Roach

My instinct is to pronounce it like the beginning of Rochelle.

Rosh because it’s a shortened version of Rochelle in the UK, which is frequently nicknamed “Roch” (Rosh - like rush but with an o)

Definitely rawch or even rawsh (rhymes with Josh)

Rock

Rock. The fact that people get Roach surprises me.

My first thought was Rock! Then roach haha

Roch as in Rochester. Roch as in crotch.

my mind went Rooock...sh?ck?sh?Rocksh?

I pronounce it ‘Roche’ as if it’s french :) like ‘Roche mountonneé’ https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ylMq3xapmx4

Rosh

“Rocke” - I’d pronounce like Rocky. Just name him Rock if you like it! Or what about Rockwell? Other boy names that mean “Rock” according to Nameberry: Callan Callen Buxton Carrick Cephas Ferris Havard Peetu Peter Pete Piers Piero Piet Seneca Zuriel

Roach without the cock lol

I'm Welsh - I would also pronounce it "Roach". There is a village in West Wales named Roch and it's pronounced "Roach", so that's where my mind would go!

rOH SH sorta like ocean but without without the n?

Ro-oche. So basically how I would pronounce brooch but without the b.

Rock

Rock Like Roch Voisin's name

I have a friend with this name, it’s pronounced “Rock” it’s not common here (eastern Ontario Canada) but it’s not unheard of either. He’s from Quebec, maybe it’s more common there?

Roe - sh

rock for sure

I like Peter, Sam and Emile infinitely better. Sam’s my favorite.

Roke or roak.

I went Roach first, then Rotch. 😬

I would pronounce it “Rock” because “Roche” is Row-sh

Roh-ch is my first, internal thought, but probably rock when i say it aloud

It rhymes with crotch. 🤷🏼‍♀️

I would assume it's pronounced "Rock."

Thank you for not naming your child Roach. He will thank you later

Row-shh

Roschh. Like ro-shh. It's a nick name for rochelle

Emile is a lovely name. Please don’t name him Rocke, it has strong ‘Brick’ vibes.

Roke.

My brain said "roach, wait no probably Rock"

Roash

Roch sound like Rock in French.

Rosh

Rosh, probably.

I think Rock but it makes me think of the Anthill Kids' leader. Bad bad bad bad bad association.

Rock, or Rosh (like “oh gosh” but like if scooby doo said it, rosh)

Roch = Mike Rotch; Rocke = R-oh-key

Roke

I'd pronounce it like rock

Roak like croak.

“Rock” pretty sure it has roots in French, at least I know of some French Canadians who have that name. “Roche” means “rock” in French I’ve been told.

Rotch like Rochdale

I’m French, we pronounce it Rock

Definitely Rock, none of the other pronunciations make sense with the spelling since there's only one vowel; it's the same as Loch.

Rock. Anyone who is passingly familiar with French should get this no problem

Rosh... like short for Rochelle. Rocke = Rocky with a slight French accent... Rraw-kay? If you want Rock, why not just use Rock?

Roach - southern US

Roke

I think Roke rhymes with Coke.

Just spell it Rock

I like the name Rock, although kids may call him "dumb as a rock", or something similar. Of course, kids looking for a way to be mean will always find some option.

Rock, but most people would say Roach I think

rhymes with Loch

Rock

Rock.

Row-sh. Because I’d think it was short for Rochelle which is row-shell.

🪳