New Name?

The pronunciation of Eli (EEEEE-LIE) here in Turkey sounds like a girls' name. For the last four months when introducing Eli we've gotten one of two reactions: 1. A confused look followed by a slow attempt to repeat his name or 2. Questions like, "Oh, this is your daughter??" "Oh, this is a girl?", etc. While I can write off most of this as a cultural/language difference, it still bothers me a bit. I would love to say out loud, "Come on people...does he even remotely look like a girl??" Uh. No. As I think ahead, I really want to spare him the pain of children on the playground, in school, in the neighborhood, etc. teasing him because he has a "girls' name." So, Zach and I have been toying with the idea of having Turkish people call him Ilyas (pronounced EEE- LEE-YAS). The name translates as Elijah. The Turks would know it from the prophet Ilyas (Elijah) in the Bible, and the prophet Ilyas in the Qu'ran. Still, we would call him Eli as would our English speaking friends. Could it be confusing?? Possibly. That's why we're still in the consideration phase.