Names you aren't sure how to pronounce

[whatausername]

Since we're all inside for the foreseeable future...

What are some names you're not quite sure how to pronounce? We'll see if we can help each other. But do take answers with a pinch of salt given the wide variety of accents we all have!

For me: Hebe (hee-bee?) and João leave me feeling uncertain.

Bride

(Generated a long and ultimately unresolved discussion on a Chalet School thread last year.)

I've never heard Maeve pronounced with a 'Y' sound. But I have no idea how to write the sound that I know...Maave maybe?

Saoirse is SEER-shuh. Second syllable is a schwa. Nothing like Sorcha. (Or Seoirse, which is the Irish for George.) It’s the same diphthong sound (aoi) as Aoife (EEF-uh) and taoiseach.

Niamh is NEE-uv, but often pronounced Neev.

The João I know is roughly Jwow.

I wish people would stop confidently pronouncing that Saoirse is ‘Sawsha’. It isn’t. If you know a Saoirse who genuinely pronounces her name as Sawsha she’s mispronouncing it! Those sounds simply aren’t pronounced like that.

Ji me? @Guttersnipe

Ghislane Maxwell seems to pronounce it Gi-len. Or rather, those interviewed about her do.

Saoirse - seer sha
Aoife - Eefa
Helena - Hel-eena
Sara - Sah-rah
Caoimhe - Keevuh or Kweeva depending on dialect
Lila - Lee-luh
Dana - Dah-nah
Catriona - Katrina
Jeane - Jean
Vivienne - Vivvy-en
Margot - Mar-go
Lena - Lee-nuh
Maeve - Mayve
Cherie - Shuh-ree
Grainia - Grainne is proper Irish spelling and pronounced gron-ya

Sorry. I wrote Mayve but the ae is flatter than ay. I hear Saoirse as Sair-sha

The Catrionas I know - both scottish - say Cat-ree-ona

Aneurin,
Is it AH-NYE-RIN , UH-NYE-RIN or something else entirely?

What is the name that is pronounced Neeve in Ireland?

Hebe rhymes with phoebe when pronounced in English (I have a daughter called Hebe) however in Greek it's actually Evie - they don't pronounce the H so Hera is actually Ear-a

Native Gaelic speaker friend says kah-treena for Catriona

@MikeUniformMike Niamh, I believe

Angharad (not sure of spelling).
In my head it's ann-ger-rad but I've only ever seen it written down

Maya is one that gets me.

One of my children has a May-a in their class.

The other has a Miy-a.

I always have to stop and remember which pronunciation to use.

Same for all Greek names starting with H btw! So Hermione is actually Er-mi-on-ie

Grainne = Gra (as in straw) -n-ya
Gaelic form of Grace

Angharad is Ann ha rad. You don't pronounce the g.

Joao - sounds kinda like jo wow

What is the name that is pronounced Neeve in Ireland?

Niamh

I think a couple of these have a couple of accepted pronunciations, for example:
Helena: "Helen-ah" or "Hel-lane-a" (I know 2 of each who pronounce it differently)
Elise: American/Australian "El-eese"
French/European "El-eeze"

I added the y to the sound for Maeve too but it's hard to write how I say it! Also spelled Meabh.

It's Mave as in wave..... if that makes more sense.

Helena can also be Hel-ee-na, as some pp have said.

Dugald.

Surely Elise is elle-eese?
Not elle-eeze?