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Original poster

unusual pretty irish girl names

92 replies

mum4five · 15/05/2015 19:50

hi im 38weeks pregnant an looking some unusual girls names

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3luckystars · 17/05/2015 19:10

My friend had a cat called chicken

Lipsync · 17/05/2015 00:57

Amen, Mitzy. Erin is packet soup, Shannon is 'industrial estate near airport', rather than river, and Colleen is plain odd if you speak two words of Irish. A bit like calling your dog 'Dog'...

MitzyLeFrouf · 16/05/2015 21:27

I'd put Erin and Shannon in the same category. And Colleen.

MitzyLeFrouf · 16/05/2015 21:26

It is a bit makey-uppy though in that it's the Americanisation of 'Eireann'.

Personally I can't past the soup connection.

MildDrPepperAddiction · 16/05/2015 21:24

Erin is derived from Eiru, who was an ancient goddess. It's not a 'makey-uppy' name. It is quite common though so not really unusual.

3luckystars · 16/05/2015 20:10

Ahaha, nuala! That's what what we call our lady bits in Limerick anyway. Awful.

I think Emer goes with your other names but is not that unusual. What about Eilidh, its like Eileen without the n.

WhatWouldCaitlinDo · 16/05/2015 19:29

Alannah or Alana (derived from a leanbh) was on our list. I also like Ailbhe and Saoirse, but avoided them as we live in the UK and people struggle with Dd1's name, which I thought was so easy it was practically phonetic.

Macushla is so makey-uppy, to my mind. I know it's from mo chuisle, but it just feels Plastic Paddy to me.

sweetpeame · 16/05/2015 18:44

A friend of a friend living in Northern Ireland has a DD called Cushla... Had never heard of it, certainly not in the east or west of Ireland. Don't particularly like it. All this talk of Nuala as a pretty name leaves me in stitches to be honest (sorry to any Nualas out there!). In my mind Nuala is a name for a women 70+ (at least!) who wears thick support tights year round and never misses a Novena at the parish church Grin. Sorry to be harsh but I think it has similar connotations for a lot of Irish people.

geekaMaxima · 16/05/2015 18:24

If you really want unusual names (but real ones!), there are some in this list of ancient Irish queens.

I kinda like:
Ailbíne
Dunlaith

MitzyLeFrouf · 16/05/2015 18:16

Yes, macushla machree (mo chuisle mo chroí) is the only context I've heard it being used. But I suppose Alanna is a name that originated from a term of endearment too.

KanyesVest · 16/05/2015 18:15

Should have Googled before posting Grin

KanyesVest · 16/05/2015 18:13

I've never heard of Macushla either. It sounds to me (witg no actual knowledge or expertise in the area) that it might be an evolution of a pet name/term of endearment, much like mo stor, mo croi, or similar?

cerealqueen · 16/05/2015 18:03

Orchil- I think its real Sqoosh, found it on an on-line Irish girl's name website!

A lot of these names I've never heard of - all the girls in my Irish family going back generations were Bridge/Bridie, Kathleen, Eileen, Celia, Nancy and Noreen and we were likewise named variations of these.

oneowlgirl · 16/05/2015 17:55

I'm from the 'exotic' North & never heard of anyone called Macushla either!

I totally disagree with Nuala being like Mildred though - it's my favourite name Grin

FuzzyWizard · 16/05/2015 16:45

I know a teenage Nuala too... I'm not in Ireland but her mum is Irish Irish as opposed to my-great-granny-was-a-quarter-Irish Irish.

StAlphonsosPancakeBreakfast · 16/05/2015 16:14

I realise on re-reading that my post might seem quite rude, bluewisteria, so apologies. Blush

MitzyLeFrouf · 16/05/2015 16:06

It would be considered highly unusual in the sunny southeast too. Maybe it's those exotic Northern types who've used it.

StAlphonsosPancakeBreakfast · 16/05/2015 16:04

Really? Well then I take it back Grin and maybe it's a regional thing - in the Southwest and the East, the two places I have lived for most of my life, it would be seen as a real "Plastic Paddy" name, the kind an American who was 1/24th Irish would give their child.

bluewisteria · 16/05/2015 15:55

How strange. I've met two Macushla's from Ireland, both under 30. And I have family who know others.

Allwayslookingforanswers · 16/05/2015 15:50

Nuala, Orla and Oona are my faves

Original poster
mum4five · 16/05/2015 15:43

hi have a caoimhe an a saoirse an a clodagh already im really liking cuisle (kush-la) but nobody else does I also like fiadh fianna and maybe aoibhlinn

OP posts:
McBinkers · 16/05/2015 14:37

Ha! Stupid auto correct, it was Aoife!

StAlphonsosPancakeBreakfast · 16/05/2015 14:23

I think she might mean Aoife. Grin

MitzyLeFrouf · 16/05/2015 14:21

Alfie??

McBinkers · 16/05/2015 14:16

Éabha
Caoimhe
Fiadh
Alfie
Dervla