Mairead (Scottish pron.)

[SomeSunnySunday]

I really love this (it's pronounced My-redt). We are keen to find a Scottish girl's name, just in case this DC turns out to be a girl. Our boys have Scottish boys name, but I struggle with girls' names, there are very few Scottish girls names that I really love. Apart from Mairead.

Is it a step too far? We are Scottish and live in Scotland, but not in a Gaelic speaking part, and I worry that even lots of Scots will struggle to pronounce it (or will default to the Irish pronunciation, 'Maraid'), and I'd just be opening her up to a lifetime of correcting how people even say, let alone spell, her name.

I like it but I'm scottish and thought it was pronounced Mi-raid . To rhyme with parade . Is that not right ?

That's the Irish pronunciation, olaf! This is what I'm worried about. The Irish version is far more prevalent in lowland Scotland for some reason. Suspect she'd get pretty fed up of correcting people.

It's lovely, but my instinct would be to pronounce it Ma-raid as well I'm afraid (I'm from Glasgow). I mean, I'd only mispronounce it once, but I think you'd have to correct me the first time! Don't think it's too difficult for folk to get the hang of once they've been told.

Just makes me think if Mairead Philpott - who helped set the fire to kill her 6 children.

Sorry.

I know a Glaswegian Mairead, she doesn't seem to have too many problems. I'm Irish though so did initially think 'you pronounce it how??'

But it's a different name, Waffle!

We're going to have to move to the Outer Hebrides if we want to use it, aren't we....

Thank you, squoosh.

I've also seen it spelt "Maighread". Which just seems a hugely over complicated spelling to me, but would this be better, to distinguish from Irish Mairead?

I'm from Edinburgh and went to school with a Mairead, pronounced the Scottish way.

She did have to correct a few people, but people tended to remember how to say her name after they'd been told once, so it was never a big issue for her I don't think.

Think it's lovely, I had a Mairead in my class at school but have only come across a handful since so not overly used. Pretty perfect I would say

Go for it OP!! I'm in Scotland and everyone locally manages Seonaid (SHONN-idge), Eilish (AY-lish), Eilidh (AY-lee; lots), Mhairi (VAR-ee), Sine (SHE-nuh) etc etc etc without any difficulties.

In Gaelic, it's normally the first syllable of any word that is stressed.

Have you come across this website, which echoes your pronounciation:
www.forvo.com/word/mairead/
It might perhaps make things easier just to refer to that.

The difference between Irish and Scottish pronunciations is amazing. No wonder I have such a hard time understanding BBC Alba.

Thanks everyone. Flora, I think we would need to send that out with the birth announcement, but we could do that... I have a good friend who is a Seonaid, and she quite often gets "Sinead" (even in Scotland), but usually only once.

It's not a different name to 'Irish' Mairead, OP. It 's exactly the same name, Gaelic / Irish for Margaret, just pronounced differently in the two languages. Like the name Margot, also a variant of Margaret - it's just 'Margoh' in French versus 'Margo-tt' in English.

The Irish spelling should have a 'fada' / accent on the 'e' as in 'Mairéad' to denote the emphasis on the second syllable. People usually drop fadas for convenience though so that confuses things. I love the name with either pronunciation though, very classy.

it's just 'Margoh' in French versus 'Margo-tt' in English

I think Mar-gott is just a mispronunciation!

Does anyone have thoughts on spelling it "Maighread" versus "Mairead"? I've never actually met anyone who spells it "Maighread", but have seen it referred it as a legitimate alternative spelling, and it might help to avoid the "Maraid" issue.

People would try and pronounce the g I think, besides, Mairead is a much prettier spelling.

Thanks, yes I far prefer Mairead as a spelling.

I like it, but go for Lorna as I like it better and it's easier to pronounce :o

I don't really think the alternative gh spelling would help anyone who had not met the name before. They might still read the the 'ai' in the first syllable as 'ay' (in 'May' or 'hay') instead of 'eye' or 'aye'.

But once they've remembered that 'eye'/'aye' sound , the rest is easy. The r in the middle is straightforward. In the final syllable, the 'ea' is 'e' as in 'get' and the 'd' at the end becomes a rather breathy 't'.

Then, if they put all three sounds all together, stressing the first syllable, they will get Maye-r-eht or Myr-eht. Job done!

Just in case it is relevant, no-one used the gh spelling in Scotland last year - and there were only 5 babies named Mairead: www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/files2/stats/popular-forenames/2013/babiesnames-2013-t4.pdf

squoosh Have just come across this by chance. It's tongue in cheek, but might perhaps be of interest???
www.cuhwc.org.uk/page/unofficial-guide-pronouncing-gaelic

i have a friend who lives in outer hebrides; it is spelt maighread, I am led to believe this is considered correct scottish gaelic spelling in west highlands hers is pronounced MY-redt,

Thanks all, this is helpful. I think we would probably stick with Mairead, and be prepared to explain the pronunciation to people. Although we'll probably have another boy, and so all of this will be irrelevant .