It was a major revelation on one of my ancestral families when I discovered how the last name was actually pronounced by a native low-German speaker. Variant spellings made much more sense and I was better equipped to see other ways the name could have been rendered in records by someone who did not know how to spell the name. If the last name you are researching is not English, see if you can find someone who knows the language to help you out.
Even native English speakers may say their name in a way that you don’t expect and that too can create unexpected spelling variants.
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Surname, Sevier. Many, many different pronunciations. It’s of French origins. And I argued with my grandfather over it’s pronunciation. I thought I was all that, having a year of French class under my belt. I was totally WRONG. It’s pronounced like the English word: severe. You always, always, ALWAYS pronounce the last R no matter how it’s spelled. Xavier, Sevier, Seavier, Saveer, etc.. Sorry, Grandpa!
Married name — Albrecht. Mother-in-law pronounces it All-Bright, says the “ekked” sound is too harsh and Bright sounds more friendly.
Surname Schardein. We’ve always said Shar-deen. Always wondered about the occasional spelling Shardine. A cousin once asked if I’d ever heard the name pronounced Shar-dine. She remembered hearing a grandparent pronouncing it that way. That alternate spelling suddenly made sense. Also the name is German which makes “shar-dine” more likely the original pronunciation.