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Baby names

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

Original poster

Cielo

38 replies

babysharkdoodoodedoodedoo · 23/07/2023 11:40

Met a baby Cielo and was wondering why it wasn’t more popular. A dedication name for the Virgin Mary, and the Spanish word for ‘sky’, apparently. I thought it was beautiful but never heard it before! What do you think? Any idea why it’s not more popular?

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stewinbeard · 26/07/2023 13:50

*In England anyway. IMO.

stewinbeard · 26/07/2023 13:50

In my opinion, it would be advisable to avoid choosing this name as it may only gain popularity as a short-term trend among either the artistic, bohemian middle class or the less affluent and aspirational parents who aspire to the lifestyle portrayed on reality TV shows like "The Only Way Is Essex." Consequently, it could quickly lose its appeal and become tacky.

WildCherryBlossom · 26/07/2023 09:46

Now I have the lovely word 'murcielago' (moor-THYE-lagoh) on my mind. Such a beautiful, delicate word and makes you so much more inclined to like the creatures than the English name 'bat'.

SharpLily · 25/07/2023 18:47

It's only a soft 'th' sound, not like the 'th' in think.

NotComplicated · 25/07/2023 17:17

I feel embarrassed to have either forgotten or not to know this as in the past I have lived and worked in the Balearics (but German would be most useful there), Valencia and Andalusia and still work for a Spanish company AND I’ve devoured every episode of el ministerio del tiempo including the one where they joked about this 🫣 I wondered if it was regional but clearly not! And I have much Iberian ancestry but by way of the Americas 😳

SharpLily · 25/07/2023 16:41

NotComplicated · 25/07/2023 15:04

I’ve never heard Cielo pronounced with a th, in which parts of Spain do people say it like that?!

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Huh? In Castellano, C is pronounced as a soft 'th' when followed by I. Not in Latin American Spanish as mentioned above. I couldn't tell you about Catalan or Galician for example but that's how it is in Castellano. It's my language. I don't know what else to tell you.

WildCherryBlossom · 25/07/2023 15:18

@NotComplicated Thyelo would be the way most European castellano speakers would say it. Syelo in many Latin American accents. Just as the most Europeans would say "Muchas grathias" and LAms would say "Muchas grassias"

NotComplicated · 25/07/2023 15:04

SharpLily · 25/07/2023 14:44

This is also not quite correct thouch, as in European Spanish a C before an I is pronounced with a soft 'th', so it is more like 'Thyehlo'.

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I’ve never heard Cielo pronounced with a th, in which parts of Spain do people say it like that?!

Notcivilnotservant · 25/07/2023 14:49

Cielo Drive = Manson to me too. Sorry.

SharpLily · 25/07/2023 14:44

NotComplicated · 25/07/2023 12:41

The ie in cielo is a diphthong, it’s pronounced in Spanish with a slight short yuh: Syehlo. It’s not drawn out as in see-eh-lo.

In Italian it is pronounced with a ch as in chair, not the K sound.

This is also not quite correct thouch, as in European Spanish a C before an I is pronounced with a soft 'th', so it is more like 'Thyehlo'.

NotComplicated · 25/07/2023 14:10

María is occasionally part of some compound Italian and Spanish boy names too such as Giancarlo Maria or José María or randomly added as an extra middle name.

Yuasa · 25/07/2023 13:32

WoolyMammoth55 · 25/07/2023 13:06

Name for a boy or a girl?

Spanish girls names almost always end in the feminine 'a' - Maria, Celia, Paloma, etc.

So the Virgin Mary thing is confusing because I'd expect an 'o' ending name to be for a boy? Who is also being named for the Virgin Mary...?

Seems to me the same as calling an English kid Sky - unusual, a bit hippy, not particularly lovely, not historically a human name!

Glad you loved it though :)

Is this the Virgin Mary connection? I have known a few women called Mar (sea, masculine) but the full name is or would once have been Maria del Mar. There are a few Spanish names like this.

SlideandPolka · 25/07/2023 13:25

FayCarew · 25/07/2023 13:16

@SlideandPolka , but there are many names that are pronounced differently in two or more european languages. Anne, David, Thomas, Charles, Marie ...

Yes, I speak five languages. I went, as did most friends bringing up children across cultures, with a name that doesn’t morph too much between languages. Something like Constance works better between languages than something where the initial consonant is completely different, as with Cielo.

elp30 · 25/07/2023 13:21

I'm Mexican and I've heard the name "Cielo" for a girl but it's not that common.

However, "Araceli" is more commonly used which also means "Sky" but it's not associated with Mary.

Marie2023 · 25/07/2023 13:20

It’s my DS’s GF name. She’s from South America.

elp30 · 25/07/2023 13:18

WoolyMammoth55 · 25/07/2023 13:06

Name for a boy or a girl?

Spanish girls names almost always end in the feminine 'a' - Maria, Celia, Paloma, etc.

So the Virgin Mary thing is confusing because I'd expect an 'o' ending name to be for a boy? Who is also being named for the Virgin Mary...?

Seems to me the same as calling an English kid Sky - unusual, a bit hippy, not particularly lovely, not historically a human name!

Glad you loved it though :)

I see your point but the word sky, cielo, is masculine.

FayCarew · 25/07/2023 13:16

@SlideandPolka , but there are many names that are pronounced differently in two or more european languages. Anne, David, Thomas, Charles, Marie ...

SlideandPolka · 25/07/2023 13:13

NotComplicated · 25/07/2023 12:41

The ie in cielo is a diphthong, it’s pronounced in Spanish with a slight short yuh: Syehlo. It’s not drawn out as in see-eh-lo.

In Italian it is pronounced with a ch as in chair, not the K sound.

Exactly. I wouldn’t use a name that had two entirely different pronunciations in different European languages.

WoolyMammoth55 · 25/07/2023 13:06

Name for a boy or a girl?

Spanish girls names almost always end in the feminine 'a' - Maria, Celia, Paloma, etc.

So the Virgin Mary thing is confusing because I'd expect an 'o' ending name to be for a boy? Who is also being named for the Virgin Mary...?

Seems to me the same as calling an English kid Sky - unusual, a bit hippy, not particularly lovely, not historically a human name!

Glad you loved it though :)

NotComplicated · 25/07/2023 13:05

I get you OP, it’s not a sound found in English to my knowledge.

pinksunglasses · 25/07/2023 13:01

NooNakedJacuzziness · 23/07/2023 12:46

My first thought was Cielo Drive (Manson murders) but hopefully not many others will think of that!

Same here!

Original poster
babysharkdoodoodedoodedoo · 25/07/2023 12:59

NotComplicated · 25/07/2023 12:41

The ie in cielo is a diphthong, it’s pronounced in Spanish with a slight short yuh: Syehlo. It’s not drawn out as in see-eh-lo.

In Italian it is pronounced with a ch as in chair, not the K sound.

The couple I know with the baby Cielo are Spanish. I couldn’t think of any other way to write it to explain pronunciation!

OP posts:
NotComplicated · 25/07/2023 12:41

The ie in cielo is a diphthong, it’s pronounced in Spanish with a slight short yuh: Syehlo. It’s not drawn out as in see-eh-lo.

In Italian it is pronounced with a ch as in chair, not the K sound.

AppleDumplingWithCustard · 25/07/2023 09:13

NooNakedJacuzziness · 23/07/2023 12:46

My first thought was Cielo Drive (Manson murders) but hopefully not many others will think of that!

Me too!

Original poster
babysharkdoodoodedoodedoo · 25/07/2023 08:20

NooNakedJacuzziness · 23/07/2023 12:46

My first thought was Cielo Drive (Manson murders) but hopefully not many others will think of that!

Me too, if I’m honest! 😁

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