Eithne pr. Eth-nee/Eth-nay?

31 replies

EarnestDullard · 09/08/2012 13:57

DD2 due in October, and Eithne has so far been the only name DH and I agree on. Having originally heard it in the film The Four Feathers, we though it was pronounced Eth-nee or Eth-nay (or somewhere in between). But having researched a bit, the traditional pronunciations seem to be Enya or Eth-na. I'm not overly keen on those, so I sort of discounted the name. But now, a couple of months later, it's the only name DH still really likes.

So: is Eth-nee/Eth-nay an acceptable alternative pronunciation, or would we technically be pronouncing it wrongly?

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Original poster

EarnestDullard · 10/08/2012 20:07

Ooh, thankyou, that's good to know. I guess it's back on the table then :)

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sparkle12mar08 · 10/08/2012 10:54

My Irish mil has a sister called this who's lived in Ireland her entire life as had her parents - pronounced Eth-nee

amck5700 · 09/08/2012 14:42

lovely name btw.

amck5700 · 09/08/2012 14:41

In Scotland I've heard it pronounced Eyeth nay (neh)

Original poster

EarnestDullard · 09/08/2012 14:15

We're in London, so I do understand that we'd probably have to explain the pronunciation to people. We're Scottish originally though, so the "nee" is quite soft in our own accents, more like a "neh" or almost a "nay" than a longer "ee" sound.

I just don't want to feel like we're making up a pronunciation to suit ourselves. I'd rather choose a different name than do that.

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Belchica · 09/08/2012 14:02

Hi, I'm Irish and have heard this name back home pronounced Eth-na only. If you're mainland UK, it's the sort of name you'll probably find yourself explaining a lot, so to that end, you'll be able to put people right on how you want to pronounce it...in which case I think Eth-nee would be easier for people to get their heads around.

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