Active discussions

Help protect children from gaming harms.

Take our survey

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Baby names

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

Original poster

Oona

58 replies

17caterpillars1mouse · 20/06/2021 10:55

What do you think of the name Oona? I imagine a lot of people will prefer the spelling Una, which is actually a family name for me (though she pronounced it you-na) but I just love the spelling Oona

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Set a reminder
New posts on this thread. Refresh page
TheYearOfSmallThings · 21/06/2021 09:24

it was Great-Aunt Oonagh wasn't it?

Ah no, it was Great Aunt Dympna - Miss Oona was the kindly neighbour who helped the children.

Now Dympna is a name you don't see much these days.

ILoveStickers · 21/06/2021 08:33

@CliffsofMohair Fair! Grin

SeanChailleach · 21/06/2021 08:21

@theyearofsmallthings yes "The Growing Summer" - it was Great-Aunt Oonagh wasn't it? Spreading the laundry out on the gorse bushes and leaving the kids to fend for themselves.

RickiTarr · 21/06/2021 05:50

😂

CliffsofMohair · 21/06/2021 05:48

@ILoveStickers

I prefer Úna, pronounced oo-na, but the Anglicised Oona is also kind of cool. It's used in Finland too, I think, so has a kind of Scandi thing too.

I personally don't like Oonagh as much - the Anglicised vowel spelling plus the -gh as a sort of Irish flourish is a bit weird to me. The -gh isn't in the Irish spelling of the name, so I see no reason to use it.

For the craic. We add the -gh for the absolute craic of it
RickiTarr · 21/06/2021 05:45

For a name that a lot of people dislike, a lot of nations are keen to claim it. Smile

peaceinourtime · 21/06/2021 05:38

I like Oona and love the double Oo

PuppyMonkey · 20/06/2021 21:56
Grin
Appin · 20/06/2021 21:50

I have an Una. Scottish, it's from the gaelic, little lamb.

We love it. A beautiful, simple sound and an individual name that really suits her personality.

We went with Una rather than Oona, because you can't write it nicely with the double o, they don't really join.

mangodreams · 20/06/2021 21:50

Not a fan at all but would choose Una rather than Oona/Oonagh if I had to. Luna is much nicer imo but I imagine quite popular post Harry Potter.

flowersatthecastle · 20/06/2021 21:49

Ooni pizza oven Blush

TheYearOfSmallThings · 20/06/2021 21:48

Maybe it's because it reminds me of Oona from The Growing Summer? A nice character, but even then it was an elderly name.

TheYearOfSmallThings · 20/06/2021 21:46

I like Úna, but somehow Oona seems dated in a bad way (besides looking wrong). Like Sheila seems dated but Síle is fine.

PuppyMonkey · 20/06/2021 21:45

Laughing at all this as my name is Oonagh and I have a love/hate relationship with it.Grin

I can confirm I am in my 50s, not my 70s.

Una and Oonagh are pronounced the same.

It’s not Yoona.

It’s a no from me if I’m honest. Grin

OddshoesOddsocks · 20/06/2021 21:42

Love it

Una was on our list for dd3 but Oona seems ‘cooler’

LizzieAnt · 20/06/2021 21:42

Yes indeed RickiTarr. Loads of anglicised spellings and pronunciations are used in Ireland, in surnames especially, and placenames also. Still Irish names of course, but not Irish language ones.

yellowthursday · 20/06/2021 21:39

Love it! And love the Oo spelling

RickiTarr · 20/06/2021 21:16

Oonagh/Oona is an anglicised spelling, not an Irish language one. However, the name has been anglicised within Ireland as well as outside Ireland (for the last 100 years or so anyway)

Ah thanks for putting me right. It crossed my mind that maybe Oona was the anglicised version of Oonagh the Irish one, then I realised that couldn’t be right so stopped before I confused myself again. Smile

It gets so complicated where there have been so many layers of occupation and migration over centuries.

TurtleBay28 · 20/06/2021 21:13

Oona looks a bit odd but it's an okay name.

When I saw it at first I thought you meant Oana. I know a Oana. That's a nice name when pronounced correctly.

december2020 · 20/06/2021 21:06

Oona is also a scandi name (I'm scandi) but we pronounce is Awn-ah

SeanChailleach · 20/06/2021 21:05

@Labradooodle

Úna is ok, bit dull. I dont like that it just means 'a' in Spanish. Im irish but the sound Úna, I hear the spanish meaning and it's just too bland and random as a name.
I think of the Irish word "uaithne" which has several meanings including "emerald green". I think this is the origin of the Irish name but not sure. There is a soft h sound in between the oo and the na iyswim.
LizzieAnt · 20/06/2021 21:00

Sorry, cross post earlier @RickiTarr.
Úna is Irish, quite an old name, I'm not sure how old but there are 14th century Únas. May have come from Latin originally or maybe from uan, the Irish for lamb - as far as I know the etymology isn't certain.
Oonagh/Oona is an anglicised spelling, not an Irish language one. However, the name has been anglicised within Ireland as well as outside Ireland (for the last 100 years or so anyway), but the Úna spelling is more popular in Ireland. It's seen as a bit old fashioned now but I like it. I quite like the Oona spelling too OP.
I don't about the Scandinavian link. Other Irish names have ended up there and vice versa though. Or maybe the root of the name is different there, I'm not sure.

Viviennemary · 20/06/2021 20:57

I think it's awful.

RickiTarr · 20/06/2021 20:55

[quote LizzieAnt]@RickiTarr
I'd have thought Oona/Oonagh was the anglicised form of Úna though? (I'm open to correction here, don't know anything about the Scandinavian influences etc. that pp have mentioned.)
I'd pronounce Oona and Úna the same way (as Oo-nah).[/quote]
No, Oonagh is definitely an Irish spelling (as is Orlagh - getting my brain straight now). I’m not getting into the politics of the rest of it. Grin

Labradooodle · 20/06/2021 20:44

Úna is ok, bit dull. I dont like that it just means 'a' in Spanish. Im irish but the sound Úna, I hear the spanish meaning and it's just too bland and random as a name.