Irish name - Anglicised spelling - help & opinion please!

[rachysetty]

I really love the name Aine, and my Irish mum says it's pronounced Awnyah. Mum in law has been banging on about names spelling and pronunciation difficulties (even though she has suggested a couple of Irish names she likes). Part of me wants to say bugger off, the other part wants to listen as she is a retired teacher. Also my youngest sister's name is Irish and although my mum did partially anglicise it, to an accepted alternative but her name has never quite been pronounced correctly by anyone. The alternative English spelling I have seen is Anya, but that doesn't pronounce as the name I like!!!!! I was thinking of suggesting the spelling either Onya or Awnya. What do people think? ta xx

Authentic spelling please - your daughter will be grateful for such a lovely name when she is older

Use the proper spelling. Some names have anglicised spellings popular in Ireland - like Orla. Other than that, I think you stick with the authentic spelling. It's like spelling it Neve.

Also, the pronunciation isn't particularly tricky to someone English. So they probably just need to be told once. Some Irish names are hard to say in an English accent, and I think those are the ones that get said wrong again and again, and again.

Spell it correctly, Awnya looks so unattractive. I don't think you need to worry about the accent over the A, lots of Irish Aines don't bother with it.

If you are going to use this beautiful Irish name, please spell it correctly.

Onya and Anya don't sound a bit like Aine, and Awnya just looks ridiculous.

Agree that lots of Aines don't bother with the fada over the A, so I wouldn't worry too much about that.

Where I am Onya sounds like Áine, but I'd never spell it that way!

Use the original spelling! I say that as someone who is both a teacher and the mother of a child with an Irish name. Most people get it right once they've been told!

Spell it right and use the fada.

Awnya looks like Yawn..
Onya gives a mispronunciation.
Anya has a different initial vowel sound and is in fact a Russian diminutive, so a long way from what you are aiming for, ethnically speaking.

Aine is lovely. I would definitely stick with the Gaelic spelling.

Choose another name rather than change the correct spelling of a name.

I don't like the name anyway so perhaps it's easy for me to say that but when I like a name, I always prefer the more used traditional spelling.

Correct spelling, with fada, if you're going to use it - Anya, while pretty, us a completely different name, and phonetic efforts like Awnya or Onya are just horrible and clunky. It's a lovely name, by the way, and not much used any more.

And tell MIL to butt out.

Keep it as Áine! I say that as a teacher in the UK and the mother of a beautiful little Áine.

thank you for all the lovely advice & for some of the unexpected slightly aggressive responses lol. (Although I do have to agree that you don't get this issue with the spelling of foreign, non-European names - if anyone asks why there is an Irish tick box on a ethnic origin form is there, I can bang on about the experiences of my mum & anyone from the previous generation).

Being of Irish decent, I want to stick to the original, but was looking for opinion. Being brought up in a Catholic community, including school, it never occurred to me it would be a problem, until the MIL said that.

I agree that neither of them are pretty, but was wondering if it was just me. My mum would just say ignore anyone that says about the spelling (maybe including a word which begins with f but isn't the rude one!). I can't get a fada to work on my laptop, so bearing that in mind I doubt it will get used on a day to day basis; a bit like my sisters name.

I do like Orla, and we were looking at Aine and Orla but the dreaded MIL suggested that alongside the middle name we had already chosen. It won't matter that we said at the time we were looking at those names anyway, she'll think she's chosen the name and (it is the stubborn side of me I know!) but I don't want her to think that and sit there with a smug smile lol. Maybe cutting my nose off to spite my face as they say!

My hubby's pref is Orla, simply for the spelling side (but then he is a practical man), but I did tell him this week that he may change his mind when the baby hasn't been named for a week!

Thanks all!

penguins Knowing two Irish Orla's, I always assumed that was the Irish spelling? If this is anglicised, what is the correct Irish spelling, out of interest?
FWIW, I don't think you should ever anglicise. It is other people's responsibility to show respect. I always have to correct people on my name/surname and it irks the tits off me and I sometimes feel embarrassed to ask people to rewrite but in the end it is MY NAME and they should make the effort, just like I do with others .
And, frankly, it is just a continuation of the Empire, anglicising.

Thw correct Irish spelling is Áine (the fada over the A changes the pronunciation to aww, without the fada would be pronounced ah) . Áine is irish for Anna.

Well, I've just shown my total ignorance. I always assumed Aine and Orla were two different names??? Both the Orla's I know pronounce it as Awrla (and that is what I've always called them and have never been corrected!) and I saw from the OP thread that Aine is Awnyah?

They are two different names, the OP has been considering both of them.

Awomb, so sweets' message wasn't in response to mine?
I'm so confused now. Is it too early to have some wine.......???

They are two different names. Odd that names like Orla (Orlaith? Orlagh?) and Maeve are acceptably Anglicised, but other Irish names absolutely cannot be messed with.

Orla is Orlaith, sometimes Orlagh. But Orla is v common in Ireland.

OP have you considered Úna?

Irish spelling for Orla is Orlaith (although different parts have variations).
To use the fada, (For capital letter put on caps lock key), press the 'Alt Gr' button the same time as the letter that letter that requires the fada. If you're using smart phone to text, hold down the letter and it gives different options for different languages.

It can also be Órla in Irish , like DD.

if we can cope with Niamh, Siobhan, Ciara we can definitely manage Aine.!

ignore MIL
why are you listening to / asking her opinion anyway?

in our school it is Lucia that seems to cause all the problems

is it Loochia?
Loosia?
Lookia?

at least with Aine there is only one correct way to pronounce it!

Sorry Francis, I was responding to the op about how using the fada is relevant because it changes the way it is pronounced in the Iris language. Áine is Awnya, Aine is Aana.

I think Orla is a modernisation rather than an Anglicisation.