Aneirin- can we? Welsh opinions particularly needed

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Finally found a name that DH and I both love but there are several things about it that make me think it could be a bad idea:

Pronunciation: we’re English, we want it to be A-nye-rin but is it really? Or are we butchering a lovely Welsh name? I’ve read mixed things about whether it’s more a-neigh-rin in a Welsh accent.

Spelling: I know the far more common spelling is Aneurin, but again I’ve seen it suggested that Aneirin is acceptable, if a very old version. Welsh mumsnetters what do you think? I prefer this spelling as I think it’s more phonetically plausible in English, and could help avoid ‘it’s like aneurism’ comments/pronunciation from reading.

Cultural appropriation: we’re not Welsh and the baby will spend at least his early years in England. Are we trying to twist a Welsh name to fit into the way we speak/read? Are our Welsh relatives and everyone we meet when we visit them going to think we’re idiots at best? (Don’t want to ask the relatives yet btw as would rather not discuss in real life if poss)

What do you think? Opinions welcome from all but I’m particularly interested in what you think if you’re Welsh!

The poet was Aneirin. He was born in 525 AD. He wasn't Welsh.
Use the name, it's nice.

It's a lovely name. As a welsh person I would assume that you've spelled it incorrectly though...I've only ever seen it with a u.

I'll add, that his poetry can be read by Welsh speakers.

If u saw aneiren written down I wouldn't assume it was the same name. Id probably actually think its a female name as it looks like a combination of Ann and Erin.

Stick with the nye bevan spelling, it's lovely.

Aneirin and Aneurin are different names, pronounced differently (An-air-in or An-eye-rin respectively). You can't spell it Aneirin and pronounce it Aneurin, or vice versa. Pick one and stick with it.

They are different spellings of the same name. Neither of bridgetreilly's pronunciation are spot on. The pronunciation of Aneurin and Aneirin is pretty much the same.
There are other names that have this two ways of spelling e.g. Eirwen and Eurwen.

Thank you for your input everyone! We’ve got another 3 months to think about it so I think we’ll keep it on the list for now and come back to it closer to the time.

Open to other suggestions too, though that may be something for another thread!

The Aneirin and Aneurins I know definitely pronounce their names differently, though I agree my attempts at phonetic spelling are not 100% accurate. They aren't the same, though.

As a fluent Welsh speaker I would definitely pronounce the name as "Ah-Neigh-Rin" and would not think to use the "Nye" sound. I know people of both spellings however, so the "Aneirin" would be perfectly fine to use.

It's a gorgeous name. But spell it Aneurin please!!

Aneurin IS well known in England.

I have a Nye (Aneurin spelling). People sometimes don't know the name at all, others know it and say, oh, like Nye Bevan? (which is fine because that's why we chose it). It often gets misspelt, as in Nie, Ni, Nial ... that's about all I can say. Go for it, it's a lovely name and there aren't enough Nyes!

I have a Nye too, without the longer version. Stay short!

I’ve never heard this name before but it sounds beautiful. Especially the nickname “nye” (how well does nye bevan roll off the tongue!) it’s really lovely OP.

Btw And a Dillon.

Dillon is a correct and traditional spelling of the name in Ireland.

And Kristofer is Scandinavian. If you are going to bitch about misspelled names, maybe check you aren’t being racist first.

Ok, first, bridgetreilly is right about it being two names. The "eu" spelling roughly means golden while the "ei" spelling comes from the word eira, meaning snow.

MikeUniformMike is right about the pronunciation.

Among first language Welsh speakers (north and south) both are said more like the "neigh" / "nay" spelling. But I know plenty of Welsh people whose first language is English who would pronounce it nye. Probably because of the anglicisation of Nye Bevans name in the press , and the weird way Welsh is taught in schools.

I think it depends whose opinion matters to you more: people who've never heard of Aneurin Bevan or people who know how to spell. I know which camp I would rather have think I was "wrong", but I am an unreconstructed intellectual snob!

Sounds like a headache pill. Never heard of it as a name.

I pronounce it An eye rin in my normal day to day accent but it definitely sounds like A neighrin when I revert to my Welsh accent, go figure.

I love it though

I live near Abergavenny. Is a lovely name, pronounced uh-nye-rin here. Call your child whatever you like, but spelling it traditionally would be best.

I pronounce it An eye rin in my normal day to day accent but it definitely sounds like A neighrin when I revert to my Welsh accent, go figure.

That would actually fit with the pronunciation differences I know.

I think it depends whose opinion matters to you more: people who've never heard of Aneurin Bevan or people who know how to spell. I know which camp I would rather have think I was "wrong", but I am an unreconstructed intellectual snob!

Normally I’d be with you 100%, but in this case I’m not sure how much you’d care about intellectual snobbery if you were a small boy and people around you got your name wrong all the time. Not that some English people wouldn’t pronounce Aneirin wrong too, I just think there’s less teasing potential with how it could be said. It’s a shame I do care about it being a real spelling, or we could just call him Aneyerin and be done with it! 😜

I can’t find much info on Aneirin after lots of googling, nothing that suggests it’s a different name linked to ‘snow’, although I can see how the ‘eir’ might lead to that assumption. (I’d like to find some evidence of it actually, as DH and I met whilst working in ski resorts so if anything it makes me like it more!)

Interestingly if you search for it on Wikipedia you get the medieval poet Mike mentioned, along with an actor who was born Aneurin but uses Aneirin (Aneirin Hughes) and another poet who was born Aneirin but used Aneurin as his ‘bardic’ name (Aneirin Talfan Davies). Seems they were undecided about spelling too!

Accurate references for Welsh names online are almost impossible to find. I have a book at home that I know is very well researched. Not home for another week now but if I remember I'll send you the details!

Aneurin and Aneirin have nothing to do with gold or snow.
The examples I gave, Eurwen and Eirwen do.

The name is pronounced 'Neuryn where I come from but the eu bit is not a sound that can be phoneticised for non-Welsh speakers.

I think it's a pleasant name, with the pronunciation Nye-rin fine. I would go with the spelling Aneirin if you want to avoid refs to urine.

I wonder if there are any little boys called Euros these dayd?

days