Irish girls names

[JedBartlet]

Orla
Tara
Clodagh
Alannah
Cara
Una

I want a nod to Irish heritage without having something difficult to spell or pronounce for people in the UK - voice of experience!

Thoughts on the above, or any other suggestions that fit the bill?

"gwenhywfar Caitlin easy to English speakers??? I'm guessing you think the correct pronunciation is Kate-Lyn?"

Ah yes, the anglcised version might not be the same as the proper pronunciation. I was thinking of Dylan Thomas's wife.

Platiumum - Karen is English as well as Danish
www.behindthename.com/name/karen-1

Agree about the Caitlin issue! I also promise never to do Keevagh or anything similar

DH not sure about Una, although it's my current favourite. I really like Siorla which someone posted
Upthread but a) I've never heard of it, is it actually a name? And b) we can't have a 'sh' sound.

God girls are so tricky. I have a ton of boys names. I think Roise is growing on me but will everyone think I've misspelled Rosie??

Ah was the Keevagh a dig at me?
It's a place in co clare! Don't see anything wrong with it, unless you're of the Katie Hopkins don't name your child after a place opinion.

How about Keelin, Roisin ,Liadan(Lee-a-dan)?

Ah was the Keevagh a dig at me?
It's a place in co clare!

You appeared to be suggesting it as an alternative spelling of Caoimhe to change it from a phonetic Irish spelling to an approximate version of a phonetic English spelling.

Eek have never had "Oh-na" Lizzie, that would seriously annoy me though.

Loads of girls in Ireland are called Erin though even if it's not originally an old Irish name. Soirla should have been Seorla pronounced Sairla, without an sh sound.

My best friend's baby is called Órla, I'd never heard of it before but I think it is a beautiful name.

I know, Clee, but I still don't have a lot of patience for Irish-American 'tribute to the Old Country' names that trickled back to Ireland (possibly via the UK?), especially when it seems to me quite a lot odder to call an Irish child living in Ireland 'Ireland' than a third-generation Irish-American living in Texas...?

But Erin is still a beautiful and Irish sounding name whereas Ireland is just awful. Shannon is equally awful in Ireland although it has a nice sound (apologies to anyone called Shannon or Ireland).

Puppymonkey - I was surprised he didn't know the name but thought maybe it was an indication of how people would mess it up. I still think Oonagh is lovely though and I'd use it for sure.

Soirla should have been Seorla pronounced Sairla, without an sh sound.

Do you mean Saorla?

Yes that's the one, but have seen different ways of spelling it. It's a lovely name. saorla.

I gather pronounced 'Noo-ahla', but it's still says 'floral pinny and twenty decades of the Rosary and the men get the best of the roast' to me.

Definitely! 😂

Even the luminous beauty of Christy Turlington can't rehabilitate Nuala for me. She will always be the pursed lipped biddy who has a fixation about the sinful heavy petting that goes on at the local teen disco!

Saorla is a maybe, I do like it but I foresee spelling and pronunciation issues.

Have been mulling over Roisin and Roise over the weekend and they're both rising up the list.

So I think my revised list in order of preference is

Roisin/Roise
Orla
Ciara
Eimear/Emer
Una
Clodagh

I'm not sure if that would be pronounced as Kelly, Kylie or Kayleigh, but there is no K in the Irish language.

No but Kevin is still an Irish name. And Kavanagh.

squoosh They are anglicised versions of an Irish name though.

Well, not exactly. Caoimhín is the Irish name for Kevin, Kavanagh being the anglicised form of Cavanagh.

Yes I get that, they're anglicised but they're still Irish names. Like most Irish surnames have been anglicised. I think it's a very narrow viewpoint to think something has to be written in the original Irish to be Irish.

Horses for courses. Keira might 'sound' Irish but it's not an Irish name - Ciara is. By all means, people can take Irish names and anglicise them in any way that they want for pronunciation or other reasons, but when I see them, and I suspect most other Irish people see them, they do a bit of a . It's like spelling Pierre 'Peeair' - and the reaction a French person would have.

But has Ciara not been anglicised at some point along the way too?

Kevin Kelly for example is an Irish name to me even if the purists are appalled and think he should actually be called Caoimhin O' Ceallaigh (can't do fadas on my phone).

And don't start me on people who give their child an 'English' name but zhuzz it up by giving it an Irish spelling to make it seem more authentic.