WDYT Irish names for a girl

[Audrey]

Hi,

My baby girl is due in November and I would like to give her an Irish name. I would appreciate any comments, opinions or suggestions on the following:-

Niamh (or should I spell it Neave?)
Orla
Eilis (pronounced Eye-lish or Aylish)
Talulla
Aisling (pronounced Ashling)
Sorcha (pronounced Sorka)
Bridget
Maeve

I was thinking of Ellie, Molly or Marie for a middle name.

Thanks in advance for your help :)
Audrey

[TwoBlue]

I love Shannon for a girl, very Irish too :)

[Elfin]

I like Maeve and Niamh the best from your list. How about Sinaed. I really like this name.

[jamb]

I love Bridget!

[maybe1more]

Hi there im pregnant with bub number two, my sons name is Connor and i want to sick to the irish names. I really love Tallulah for a girl, if i have a girl thats what i want to name her. My partner is Italian and he want a wog name the only one he has picked that i like so far is Daniella, If i have another boy i have no idea!

[xkwzit]

Hi
I also love Irish names, DD1 is Catlin (irish gaelic form of the scots gaelic Caitlin). While we *should * really pronounce it cat-LEEN, we thought it best to say it as you spell it (so she's CAT-lin). Even so, we still have people confuse it with Caitlin (which is pretty understandable).

So if it is going to drive you nuts when / if people mispronouce her name, perhaps select one that looks that same as it should sound.

ps. I do like ALL your names :) , but is Niamh becoming too popular now?

Cheers

[ZAKA]

I really like Bridget and agree with the above comment. It might be hard on your little girl if she is always saying and spelling her name correctly for people.

[petster]

Hi

I quite like your names... I like Niamh, but perhaps would spell it Neave (?)...

How about Tierney? I'm pretty sure that's Irish...

Cheers!

[Lucybelle]

I though Niamh was pronounced Nyah??

I love Mairead and Sorcha

[Audrey]

Thanks everyone for taking the time to give me your feedback. It really does help. Keep the suggestions coming!

Audrey :)

[pregasaurus]

What about Eyreil (pronounced Ariel). You can't get much more Irish than having Eyre in the name!
Ireland is gaining popularity for a girls name too.

[clairbear]

I love Bridget! I agree that difficult spellings might be a hassle for your daughter throughout her life..............but it's hard not to love all those Irish names :) Another one I really like is Clodagh (pron Cloda). I had a flatmate once called Aoife (pron Eefa) and experienced time and again the hassles people had pronouncing her name, especially when they would ring up and were reading her name on a job application or something. She ended up changing the spelling.
Good luck!

[Nickster]

How thick am I? I thought Niamh was pronounced "Nee-am", and I have an Irish background! I like Aisling, but also have heard it as Aislinn (Ashlynn). All the names you have got down to are beautiful, anyway. As Shakespeare said, "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet"....

[kamckellar]

i have 4 kids all with irish/scottish names.liam is very popular as is ethan too but they werent when i named them.my twins are isla( pronounced like island minus the nd) and keely.isla used to get the pronounciation said wrong all the time but lately people have said it right.i like all the names youve chosen.

[hummingbird]

My name is Siobhan (pronounced Shi-vorn) and I love it. We have a little Irish family history, though this was not the reason my parents chose it. They just like the sound of it. I get a LOT of compliments on how nice it sounds and it has never been a problem for me to have to spell my name out ot people. I like having something different about myself when first introduced to people and letting people know its OK if they pronounce it incorrectly or forget - it is a really good icebreaker. And it always brings a smile to my face when you go to spell your name over the phone and the person on the other end is really chuffed that they already know the spelling - they cut you short and finish it for you and that's nice to know people think they are a little clever for getting it right.

The only thing I don't like is Anglicised versions of Irish names. The hard spelling and pronunication are part of the territory and is like a badge of honor. Spelling them phonetically is kind of like cheating and takes away from the culture of the name, I think.

I would love to have Irish names with my children, though I am finding it very difficult for boys names.

[mumtoruby]

I fell in Love with the name Niamh as soo as I saw it.My second DD"s name is Mackenzie Niamh.

Lucy-29
Daniel-30
Ruby Elena- 4
Mackenzie Niamh- 3
Baby #3 Due September 2nd

[MoushiMoushi]

I used to love the name Sorcha but always thought it was pronounced SORSHA I dont like it pronounced sorka (sorry).
When I was little I wanted three daughters: Sorcha,Sasskia and Saffron :p

[~Chick79~]

While I like "different" names I think I also have to agree with some of the other comments of keeping it simple for her later on in life! My mum decided to call me Leisha and I am forever having to spell it and correct people on the pronuniation (I always get Lisa or Alicia)!

Therefore my suggestion would be Bridget (with perhaps Marie as the middle name)!

[RuthK]

Having moved back from 4 years in Ireland (along with an Irish husband and 2 kids of my own) I can verify that Niamh is indeed pronounced Neeve and Sorcha is pronounced Sor-ca (is beautiful when pronounced with an Irish accent). I also liked the name Saoirse (pronounced Seer-sha) it means 'freedom' and is a really strong Irish name. And Aoife (pronounced Ee-fa) is also becoming very popular there.

However I never came across anyone who had '-een' as an ending for their name, nor Shannon (the Americans overabused that one), nor anything that has Eir or Ire in the name. Names like these are laughed upon in Ireland, a bit the name way anyone here thinks you'd be mad to call your daughter Shiela (thinking of it as a real Aussie name).

[littlepickle]

I am not Irish but my husband is, so we have been looking at Irish names. Our surname is Irish and although I have already settled on an Irish boys name, a girls name is proving to be more difficult.
I used to work with a girl from Ireland. Her name was Aine pronounced (on-ia) I thought that that was quite pretty.
I have noticed that most of the girls on my husbands side have anglesized (?) names! there seems to be more Irish names outside or Ireland than in Ireland, I think it is nice to have something different though, people will always remember you if you have an unusual name.
Anyway, where was I - getting distracted again .. oh yeah, have you checked out Welsh names? They are also Gaelic and some are pretty. Carys is a nice name, also Nia

[mollyandkurtsmum]

A little girl in my daughters kinder class is named Sadhbh wich is pronounced SYVE or SIVE wich is quite nice. Sadhbh was born in Ireland and her older sisters name is Caigon (thats how its pronounced Im unsure of spelling sorry) Sadhbh also gets called sye which I think is a lovely shortened version

[Tisme]

When I named my daughter Alana I really wanted to spell it the celtic way - Ehlana - but with my son already having to dedicate his life to spelling his name ("thats Ciaran with a C") my other half wouldn't let me.

I have always loved the name Sorcha and Niamh but likewise was not allowed to name my poor daughter something she would have to spell for life. I grew up like Siobhan, having to spell my name and I loved it .... ok going through high school I didn't really, but there after you get used to the mispronounciation and I think it makes me more easy going with the people around me.

My favourite Irish girls names however were Fionnula and Aisling.
Heres a website for you to help you out. It is an Irish sight IN Ireland and is useful.
http://www.dublinuncovered.net/irishnames.html

[Shaezy]

There is also the lovely name Sianan which is pronounced She-an-an or See-an-an.

I've always loved that one.

[sugar n spice]

Orlis, Ellis and Tahulla are my favourites and all with the middle name marie.

[Lil X-men]

I like the irish name "Bridey" Derived from Bridget. Naeve is nice, I would be inclined to spell it that way so as people could pronounce it easily but thats JMO

[Sharlee]

DH has 2 cousins (father is Irish) and one is called Eilish and DH calls her Eyelash :rolleyes: , the other is called Brenna

[Pixie]

I like the name Talulla a lot I still want that name lol shame DB doesn't lol grrr

[Imogen]

I like Aine, Mairead, Roisin(pronounced Rosheen) and Caoilin(KEE-lin)

[lukaelmo]

I love Aisling...I think girls' names that start with an "A" are really pretty ;)

[Irish Dad]

Umm leave it with me, I'm about as qualified as you'll get for making a choice :D

[littlepickle]

Is Aine pronounced something like on-ya? I worked with a girl with that name once

[Irish Dad]

Yeah its like OnYa but no gap between the On and the Ya :D

[shed]

The only thing I don't like is Anglicised versions of Irish names. The hard spelling and pronunication are part of the territory and is like a badge of honor. Spelling them phonetically is kind of like cheating and takes away from the culture of the name, I think. .

I agree with this comment but that's mainly because I have a 'thing' against people stuffing around with the spellings of names. I know one girl called called "Leecer" (for gods sake). That takes the cake for me.

I LOVE the name Sorcha but I also thought it was pronounced Sorsha. That's my dogs middle name actually (yes, of course she has a middle name!!). I spelt it Sorscha though (umm...what was I JUST saying about people who stuff around with spellings of names???). I still do like it and was quite gutted when I found out how its supposed to be said.

When I was in Ireland I spent ages in the shops similar to "Cardiology" here, where they have all the little signs for kids rooms saying "so and so's Room", all the names were so unusual!! Every country I went to I would do the same thing.

[BlessedWithBlue]

I LOVE Eilis pron either way, wouldn't use it though as i have a cousin named Aylish. I also really like Tierney and Sinead!!!

Caoimhe (kee-va)
Cassidy
Ciara (Kee-ra)
Eithne (En-ya)
Teagan
Akaisha
Ciannait (Shen-ay)
Shanessa
Brenna
Sabia
Shannah
Shanley
Sheridan
Searlait (Shar-Lit as in Charlotte)

[LittleBoysRock]

Some Irish names I know of for a girl are...
Aoife
Alish
Erin...

Hope that helps.

[caitsmum]

My youngest daughter is Eilish Mary. We often get comments of how different her name is. Just as an adit - a little while ago after my daughter was born, my husband was at work(in a pub) one night when the trots came on the TAB from Tazzie and there was a horse - no kidding called "Eilish Mary" DH just had to put a bet on it but it came no where.

Irish names just have something a bit special about them.

Therese

[whatwasithinking]

I love Shannon for a girl, very Irish too :)
Yeah I agree with Tracey.

Like the name Shannon and what about Marie as a middlename?

[missie_mack]

Hi

I too like many others lived in Ireland for sometime and also have the irish heritage. Some of these names are seriously rarely heard of in Ireland and many of them come from folklore eg Maeve Lovely name but do you really want to call your daughter a name that means intoxicated woman??
My mother is Maureen which means Little Mary but is pretty old fashioned.

Boys appear to have more traditional irish names like Malachy (who was a Saint) which is often mispronounced as Mal-a-kee or Mal-a-chee. Originally the irish were very traditional and /or religious for example in my family the eldest son carrying the clan surname is named after his grandfather and the eldest daughter is a Mary... not that many stick by that today! Most irish families have a Susan and a Patricia a John or a Patrick. If you like the more traditionally sounding irish names look into the folklores but like I said before check the meaning and the story........

Good luck!

[Nickers79]

We named our little girl Molly... I love the name. We are nowing having our second baby and would like another irish name. This has help us alot. However we are not so much into the traditional names.

[jillaroo]

I have a friend whose sister is married to an Irishman. Their three daughters are called ...

Molly
Roisin (Rosheen)
Ellen

My friend is also married to a man of Irish heritage and the girls names are ...

Ella
Claire
Frances
Aiofe (Eeefa)
Ciarda (Keerda)

Older traditional names ...

Kathleen
Margaret
Maureen
Maura
Dolores
Fionula
Macushla
Majella
Bernadette

Jillaroo

[Audrey]

Hi,

I just realised that people are still looking at this thread so I thought I would advise that I ended up calling my daugher Niamh. The spelling is sometimes an issue, but I expected that. I stressed about it for the first month and almost changed it to Bridget, but I'm glad I stuck with it. I think it is a lovely name and suits my baby who is very petite and has lovely dark hair. Be brave and call your baby the name you love the most!!!

Audrey

[imogensmummy2005]

Just thought i'd pop in and say that my maternal grandmother is Irish and my mum loves irish names and has 4 daughters so called us: Erin (me)
Keira
Caitlin
Sinead
And if there was ever a fifth daughter she was going to be Bridget!

[cjb/jbvd]

what about Keely? very traditional irish...........

[mysonroger]

I used to love the name Sorcha but always thought it was pronounced SORSHA I dont like it pronounced sorka (sorry).
When I was little I wanted three daughters: Sorcha,Sasskia and Saffron :p

yeah i lived ireland for awhile and never heard sorcha pronounced like sorka. it means light or luminence or something like that. as far as i knew it was just pronounced sorsha! i always liked saoirse (meaning freedom and liberty) pronounced seer-sha but my friend ,who is australian knows someone called saoirse and pronounces is sursha and it just doesn't have the same ring to it for me. if we choose this name she will just have to have a sursha and a seersha in her life.
there is a website for irish names including an audio for pronounciations. if you want to find it, i can just let me know.

[mysonroger]

The only thing I don't like is Anglicised versions of Irish names. The hard spelling and pronunication are part of the territory and is like a badge of honor. Spelling them phonetically is kind of like cheating and takes away from the culture of the name, I think.

.
i loved the way siobhan has explained this.

i agree . i have an eastern european surname that no one can pronounce and it was a source of absolute pride (there were only us and one other in australia) in our family and jokes too with all the crazy attempts of spelling that we saw. we were very proud of our father's heritage and thus i have found it difficult to take on my DH's name that is bog common and doesn't mean much to me. but i guess that transition will happen once my kids are of school age.
and the fact that i had to spell it out all the time was great and never embarassing or tiring.

[jessgray]

i really like the name eilish for a girl :) what does it mean can any one tell me?

[uptheduff]

This is from my 'celtic names for children' book

Eilis, Eibhlis (pronounced like 'eye+lish' or 'ail+ish')

These names were probably borrowed into Irish from Norman Alice, meaning 'noble', and reinforced by the Hebrew Elizabeth, meaning 'God is my oath'. Many Irish names still have two or more pronunciations reflecting taste as well as regional differences.

Also: Aibhlis, Ailis

[MrsMiggins]

Oh! What beautiful names!!!!!

I really wanted Eilidh (pron. Eye-lee) but I was afraid people would think it was "eyelid"!

It's a Scottish name, but it's all from the same origin - Celtic/Gaelic.

I was considering it for a middle name instead, but we ended up going for Fae. It is made up of my mum's & both my grandma's first initials.

I just love all the names you have in your list!! Niamh is such a pretty name! Congrats on your new baby girl!:smiliedance:

[littlepickle]

I think molly is a really cute name!

[MissBrightside]

I have an Irish aunty her name is Aislinn pronounced as Ashlin, her daughter is Aife pronounced E-fa. We used to call her E for elephant! I know this is about girls names but she has 2 sons Conal and Doolin. I never knew how to pronounce Niamh, but know I do!:laughing:

[Jel]

We named our little girl Bridie. She's sitting on my knee at the moment-just woke up!

[pookiesossige]

i loved the way siobhan has explained this.

i agree . i have an eastern european surname that no one can pronounce and it was a source of absolute pride (there were only us and one other in australia) in our family and jokes too with all the crazy attempts of spelling that we saw. we were very proud of our father's heritage and thus i have found it difficult to take on my DH's name that is bog common and doesn't mean much to me. but i guess that transition will happen once my kids are of school age.
and the fact that i had to spell it out all the time was great and never embarassing or tiring.

Oh I loved reading this!! I had a 'bog common' (!!) maiden name and married a man with a dutch surname- one of the rare ones from the fresian islands (spelling??) that doesn't start with a 'Van Der ----' and I love it to bits! Our name means so much to my DH which is why about 8 years ago he decided to take it on- It was his mother's maiden name. The name he had before was just a name his dad picked for himself when he was kicked out of home as a boy and therefore his family ended up with it. If that makes sense!!!!!

-em