Aoife? When not in the slightest Irish?

[Kazriina]

Aoife is starting to really grow on me.
Up until now were sticking to the whole ' we will decide when she makes an appearance' line, mainly because DP doesn't like my name list! So go on, what do the important people think? :o

From personal experience .....

I have a very, very Irish name. I am English & have an English surname but my mum is from Ireland. I do not sound Irish & if you didn't know me well, you'd never know there was an Irish connection.

I love my name, but it has been a royal PITA all my life. English people can't say or spell it, in fact no nation other than Ireland can say or spell it. My nationality is constantly queried, am I Russian, Greek, Persian - you name it, I've been asked & the pronunciation of it is very frequently wrong.

Despite all that, I love it - but it is a burden sometimes.

By the way, check out this thread to find out what it's like to be adult with a name that will be mispronounced. It's the type of frustration that takes a lifetime to build.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/baby_names/1490192-Do-you-have-a-name-that-is-often-mispronounced

My personal favorite is a Welsh woman living in England who frequently gets asked if she knows how to spell her own name. Not to mention what she is called in the GP's waiting room.

We have named 2 week old DD Aoife. I think it is a really pretty name. DH is Irish but the majority of my friends & family had not heard of it. I have had numerous queries as to how to pronounce it and it's origins. Be prepared for that! I am hopeful though that once people have been told, it won't continue to be an issue for them.

As to whether you can use it if you have no Irish link, then yes I think you can. You name your child as you like. My theory on baby names is that you will never find a name that everyone likes or approves of. If there were such a name, it would be very common and we'd lose the wonderful diversity of names we do have.

How is it pretentious to use a name from another country, when millions of names in everyday use are from another country? Hope your boys are all called Alfred and Aethelred then....

How is it pretentious to use a name from another country, when millions of names in everyday use are from another country? Hope your boys are all called Alfred and Aethelred then....

Ethnic names? Charming.

Post Bellum what is your name -am really curious now.

Sparkle fever i disagree with you. Call tje baby what u want- it is not pretentious-are all the Emilys, Lucys parents etc living in Ireland pretentious because they gave their daugjter an 'English' name?

No you are not allowed to do this. It is WRONG and when I am queen it will be illegal.
My DCs are called Athelstan Iestyn and Elfrida Blodwen btw as they are Anglo-Welsh.

A knew an Aoife (Irish descent but living in England). She did get quite fed up having to spell the name out all the time.

It sounds pretty though, not quite the same as Eva because it's an f sound not a v (though close enough to get confused)

However, if you are still determined despite the fact that I have told you that it is wrong, then go to the mirror and say out loud the following sentence.
"no, A.O.I.F.E......
....,No, actually we're not, we're both English, I just thought it was a pretty name"

If you're not bored after 100 reps then you may call your DD Aoife with my blessing but you're still wrong.

I think it's a very pretty name and I know a 10 year old Aoife, however it is hard to spell and she will have a lifetime of people not knowing how to pronounce it. She may also tire of people assuming she is Irish.

I have a hard to spell, hard to pronounce French name. I am not French. .....and I love my name.

Perfectly fine, and not a bit pretentious or plastic paddyish. I hate anglicised spellings of Irish names though if you're going to use it, spell it AOIFE. I also hate mispronunciations of Irish spellings (eg. 'Kate-lin' for Caitlin) so pronounce it EE-feh.