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Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

Original poster

Kala

61 replies

SelfIdentifiedTable · 20/12/2018 11:43

Thinking of Kala Anadahlia for soon to arrive DD. I think it's pretty and unique, but a friend said it may be too much? What do you think?

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FrancisCrawford · 21/12/2018 19:55

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

newrubylane · 21/12/2018 19:41

@explodingkitten I think that may because many other languages have more rigid rules about how certain patterns of letters are pronounced. For instance, I speak semi-fluent French, but even if I don't know what a word is, if I see it written down in front of me I can almost always pronounce it perfectly, because there are rules. English unfortunately doesn't have these, so we have to guess - which makes unusual names tricky.

MyOtherProfile · 21/12/2018 15:21

There’s no R or Y. Why do people think it’s Karla or Kayla?
Because the letter a makes more than 1 sound phonetically.

WhippettyWeekend · 21/12/2018 15:15

Oh, unless Anadahlia is pronounced “Anadaylia” in which case it’s the “Kayla” pronunciation which is more rhymey!

Anyway, having contributed little of use here, I’ll bow out wishing you all the best in the latter stages of your pregnancy and with your daughter, who I am sure will suit whichever name/pronunciation you choose for her Smile

WhippettyWeekend · 21/12/2018 15:06

Meant to add, if it’s Kahla (or also, though to a lesser extent, Karla) Anadahlia it’s a little too rhymey and long-sounding for my taste.

WhippettyWeekend · 21/12/2018 15:02

I know a Kala and a Cala, pronounced Kayla in both cases. It’s fine to have a name that isn’t spelt phonetically, and also I think it’s good that her first name would be short, so it isn’t going to be a huge faff spelling it out to people. As a child, the Kala I know used to say to new people, “Hi I’m Kala, spelt k-a-l-a”. I on the other hand have a long first name that people don’t know how to spell. It takes ages to spell out and is a pain sometimes.

How would you be pronouncing Kala, OP?

Anadahlia is a bit long but if you like it just go for it. Middle names aren’t used too much anyway, usually!

SoupDragon · 21/12/2018 14:51

Is it Nah la?

Nesssie · 21/12/2018 14:44

Too rhyme with Gala! Not Garla I'm confused. I pronounce them both the same!

Is it 'Kar-la' 'Kal-la' or 'Kay-la' ???

SoupDragon · 21/12/2018 14:39

To people querying why others might think it's Kayla, how do you pronounce "halo" which also has no Y?

DioVelazquez · 21/12/2018 14:37

There’s no R or Y. Why do people think it’s Karla or Kayla? It’s Kala

Every time! To most of England, Karla sounds the same as Kah-la, due to how they pronounce (or don't pronounce) the letter r. So when they spell it Karla, they probably mean Kah-la.

SoupDragon · 21/12/2018 14:36

Bingo! Lots of people who pretend not to understand non-rhotic accents. 🙄

MrsFoxPlus4 · 21/12/2018 14:33

There’s no R or Y. Why do people think it’s Karla or Kayla? It’s Kala... Iv never heard of it but Iv heard worse names!

DioVelazquez · 21/12/2018 14:31

Yeah, I think it's nice. To rhyme with gala, seems obvious to me. Like Nala from the Lion King! (which is also a nice name!)

seeingdots · 21/12/2018 13:40

I think Kala's lovely. I would pronounce it ka-la/kah-la and wouldn't even think to connect it with Carla/Karla with my accent (also Scottish). Anadahlia alongside it as a middle name is a little bit of a mouthful with all the As IMO but the flow of the syllables is nice.

Lindtnotlint · 21/12/2018 12:31

Both together is a lot - both unusual and with lots of “ah” sounds. I would be tempted to explore some different combos.

AllTheAnimals · 21/12/2018 12:23

People might not pronounce it in the way you intend, which could get frustrating.

I don't think it's too out there though, so if you love it, i'd go for it!

explodingkitten · 21/12/2018 11:31

I like it. I'm foreign though and I really don't understand why so many people have a problem with pronouncing names. It's an English Thing though I believe. In other countries I don't hear so many mispronounciations.

Losingthechubrub · 21/12/2018 09:56

I know a Kala, and I've always liked her name. She's Indian if that makes any difference. I don't like the middle name though, it sounds made up

Heratnumber7 · 21/12/2018 09:52

What kind of name is Anadahlia? And is it "dayl-Lee-ah" like the flower or "dar-lee-ah"?

tammytoby · 21/12/2018 09:24

Otherwise what's the purpose of the R?!

PinkCalluna · 21/12/2018 08:13

Carla and Kala sound completely different in my accent.

tammytoby · 21/12/2018 08:09

To many, Karla sounds very different to Kala. If you prefer the pronunciation Kala, don't add an R.

BuffaloCauliflower · 21/12/2018 00:31

Is it a name from your culture? Kala in my (slightly posh London accent) sounds no different to Carla, but looks spelt wrong. Is it meant to be like Carla,? Anadahlia just looks made up Im afraid, and pretty sure that’s not cultural - Anna Dahlia night be better?

Kokeshi123 · 21/12/2018 00:27

Why not just stick to "Carla"? She will get lots of confusion regarding pronunciation and spelling.

Bluebonnieblue · 20/12/2018 23:37

I don't like it. Sorry OP! If Kala is pronounced like either Carla or Kayla then it's very dated. As for the middle name - did you make it up? It's too long and it kind of rhymes with the first name? It's just in general too much. It really made me go "eh?!?" And want some kind of explanation and it seems to have had that effect on the other PPs too. Don't make your poor daughter have to face that forever?