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Original poster

Tadhg or Tighe?!

74 replies

Marrilou · 28/08/2019 16:52

Hi all, would really value your opinions. I live in London and my husband's family is Irish. There's only one boy's name I really love: Tadhg which is Irish and pronounced Ty-g (like tiger without the 'r' sound at the end). However, I am not sure whether to spell it the traditional Irish way or use the anglecised version which is Tighe. My husband is called Eoin and is forever being called Ian/Ewan etc or being asked how to pronounce his name and I worry if we use the traditional spelling we'll be condemning the baby to a lifetime of the same... Does anyone have an opinion on this?!

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fergusthefrog · 28/08/2019 17:58

I'm English and I know the name tadgh as una Healy and Ben foden named their son it. He's so cute so don't let this taint your opinion of Tadgh! I think it's a beautiful name which has really grown on me and is definitely spell it the tradition Irish way. Tighe isn't clear to me anyway pronunciation wise.

HeyMonkey · 28/08/2019 18:21

I've honestly never heard it before.

I usually like Irish names, but it sounds I bit clumsy to me.

AloneLonelyLoner · 28/08/2019 18:29

I knew a Tadgh once. It is a lovely name. Spell it the right way. People will only need to be told once.

Original poster
Marrilou · 28/08/2019 18:45

Thanks so much for all the responses - all v.interesting!
MapMyMum that's a helpful point about the reaction to the alternative spelling in Ireland - if we're going for an Irish name it's important my husband's family in Ireland approve!
BackForGood tbh it hasn't been a massive problem for my husband, though his name (Eoin pronounced Owen) is perhaps a bit easier to work out than the pronunciation of Tadhg. He isn't really fussed about the name Tadhg either way but happy to go with it if I like it; I first saw it when I wrote a wedding invitation to his cousin and have loved it since then.
Thanks again for all the responses - it's my first post so wasn't expecting many! I feel more confident going with the traditional spelling now; as was said it won't take people long to get used to and London is so wonderfully diverse that it shouldn't really be too much of an issue. Best wishes to all x

OP posts:
Cookit · 28/08/2019 19:07

I don’t think Tighe is very obvious so you should use the proper spelling.

I love the name Niamh for example and the Neve version at least looks like how it should be pronounced. Tighe doesn’t really help at all. Use Tadhg

Alarae · 28/08/2019 19:19

I would have no idea how to pronounce either.

For the English version, I would have pronounced it Tig-hee!

DramaAlpaca · 28/08/2019 19:25

Spell it the Irish way if you are going to use it. It's a lovely name.

I used to know a Tadhg in London 30 odd years ago. If people could cope with his name then, which they did, they will be able to now.

hexagon01 · 28/08/2019 19:38

I also think go with Tadhg. I tad a teacher at school called Mr Tighe pronounced “tie” so I’d assume it was that!

kenandbarbie · 28/08/2019 20:22

Lovely in the Irish spelling. Go for it!

MrsAlanPartridge · 28/08/2019 20:26

I have a Tadg.. the very old spelling. Never had an problems with it, once explained Smile

RedPandaFluff · 28/08/2019 20:51

@Marrilou go for Tadhg, it's a great name, and would have been my boy's name if I'd been having one. I'm Irish living in England so I totally get the pronunciation concerns, but I'd just accepted that as a small price to pay for a lovely name :-)

IdahoGreen · 28/08/2019 20:55

Tadhg is great. The only issue is that English people will give it a hard ‘T’ at the beginning, rather than the Irish one, which is almost a ‘Th’.

But worth it, I think.

31RueCambon75001 · 28/08/2019 21:05

Tadhg is a cool name. Not sure English people would really get it though.

It is irish for Timothy. Is there a Scottish variant of Tadhg / Timothy?

I dont like Tighe
I would just say Tadhg like Tiger

joystir59 · 28/08/2019 21:14

I love the name but he will have a life time of explaining to do, or perhaps he will call himself Tiger later in life.

autumnkate · 28/08/2019 22:37

Tadhg is not the Irish version of Tim. It’s an ancient Irish name in its own right.

Yellowpolkadot · 28/08/2019 22:55

Go for the traditional spelling. We have a Niamh, and although DH’s family were initially sceptical (English) everyone has grown to love it (and spell and pronounce).

My family (Irish) were very happy we hadn’t gone with neve etc, we haven’t long got back from Ireland and the only spelling question we got over there was of it was with a B or not 😂

timetochangeagainforever · 01/09/2019 16:39

I wanted this name for my son and it was also a name on both sides of the family - his Irish, mine Welsh but u decided against it in the end as I thought that a lifetime of telling people how to pronounce it was not fair

DuckPie · 01/09/2019 21:03

We have a Tadhg in rural England. Get asked all the time how to pronounce it and have a lot of people mishear it as Thai.

We just correct them - using Tiger without the er and then they remember. Also gets spelt as Tadgh constantly. Kids seem to have a lot less trouble with it than adults. I think sometimes they're being deliberately awkward when I've said a one syllable name 7 times and they still don't get it Hmm

My son loves it, has been able to spell it since age 3 and just corrects anyone who gets it wrong. Just like I do with my incredibly English name that can be spelt with a 'y' but isn't.

dontcallmeduck · 01/09/2019 22:15

I like Tadhg. With Tighe it reminds me of someone I went to school with who pronounced it Tie.

LolaSmiles · 01/09/2019 22:44

I'd go Tidgh and keep the spelling. It's a lovely name.

At the risk of sounding ignorant, I'd much rather ask for the spelling of a name from a different language or, if reading it, ask someone how to pronounce their name, than feel like an awkward wally having to ask them to help me with an anglicised version that may or may not be clear. Embrace the culture.

mathanxiety · 02/09/2019 05:18

It's not really Irish for Timothy.

Timothy is an equivalent that was often used for official purposes in the days when Irish language names could not be used on official forms like census returns. The old-fashioned names Thady and Thaddeus were also used as equivalents. The ad hoc equivalent Timothy seems to have stuck.

Tadhg really means 'poet' or 'philosopher'.

I would go with the proper Irish name Tadhg.

AriadneCrete · 02/09/2019 05:43

If will most certainly not make his life in London difficult! I have a foreign name and coped with it in deepest Surrey. I now teach in London and people don’t bat an eyelid. Definitely go with the Irish spelling. He may have to pronounce it/ spell it out but once he’s done it once, it will be fine.

Saltnpepperr · 04/09/2019 14:15

If this is any help, my friend who lives in England was also wondering this. She is half Irish and wanted the name Tadhg for her son but thought it would be better spelt Tighe coz they live in England so she went with Tighe. When he was a few months old she formally changed it to Tadhg as she found she had to tell a fair few people how to pronounce is anyway so it may as well have the traditional Irish spelling. It’s a fab name, I love it.

MissHenty · 05/09/2019 11:11

I’m not quite sure why you’ve picked a name that’s so hard to pronounce given what you say about your husband. I have no idea how to pronounce either spelling, sorry

thatmustbenigelwiththebrie · 05/09/2019 11:31

I think you're lumbering the poor lad with a lifetime of shit giving him a name like that.