| Kommentar | To get back to the original question ...
I think you misunderstand slightly what the pronunciation Louie represents.
If you're talking about someone French (a king, an actor, etc.), then yes, Louie is the pronunciation of the name that's written Louis. Louis XIV is spoken as "Louie the fourteenth."
However, if you're talking about someone or something English or American (a jazz trumpeter, a city in Missouri, etc.), it's a nickname, a short form. The full name Louis in English is usually pronounced just like the name Lewis, with an S. The short, affectionate form, however, ends in -ie, like other diminutives.
Bill - Billy Bob - Bobby Edward - Eddie Louis - Louie
That's why it would make sense if Mr. Armstrong was called Louis ("Lewis") in public, but Louie by family or close friends. It's also true that most people now speak of him affectionately as "Louie Armstrong," but I don't think we would in a more formal context.
(That is, Louis and Lewis are the same in AE. In BE, Lewis {but not Louis} might be pronounced Liu-iss, like 'lieu.')
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