Ciara / Keira?

[Nell96]

Thoughts on Ciara? Irish name, pronounced Keer-a (I believe). We're not Irish, no recent Irish heritage and we live in north-west England - would it be weird? Do you like the name? Would you go for Keira as a spelling instead? It just reminds me of Keira Knightley...

Ciara is the nicest spelling of the name.

People are so comfortable saying “spell it a different way” because it’s Irish but wouldn’t dream of saying it about an Arabic name, is absolutely laughable. All cultures and languages should be respected.

I pronounce it see-air-a as in the music pop star

@SemperIdem

Ciara is the nicest spelling of the name.

People are so comfortable saying “spell it a different way” because it’s Irish but wouldn’t dream of saying it about an Arabic name, is absolutely laughable. All cultures and languages should be respected.

But arabic names are spelt in different ways; take Laila, it's writtern as Leila, Laila, Layla, Lila and Lyla.

Well spotted. The pop star Ciara is named after a fragrance made by a company called Revlon. They named the fragrance SEE-AHR'-AH using the initials of Charles Revson, the perfume's designer.

The Irish name is from the word "ciar" which means "dark". The word appears in the earliest Irish literature and in the name of County Kerry, "Ciarraígh".
"Ciarseach" (keersha) means "hen blackbird" and was used as a nickname or affectionate name for a woman.
The name "Ciarán" appeared very early -there was a Saint Ciarán, Cornish Saint Piran born in the 5th century CE - and then later Ciara.
In Irish the name Ciara may sound like "Cheera" when a native speaker says it.
In sentences the first consonant changes so the name may sound like "Sheera" or even "Heera", sometimes "Geera". In some dialects it would sound like "Feera" or "Peera". That's why k isn't used in Irish - k is a very fixed sound.
I do think, if you are going to fix the sound, you might as well use initial k.

Ciara is lovely and perfectly straightforward. There are loads of Ciaráns, after all. Use it!

Chiara is a completely different Italian name. I guess people might mix it up but I think that will be a minority.

Ciara is perfectly well known and easy to pronounce.

@SeanChailleach
"Ciarseach" (keersha) means "hen blackbird" and was used as a nickname or affectionate name for a woman.
I think possibly it's céirseach you're thinking of? It's pronounced something like care-shock where I'm from (very approximately; slender r and broad ch really). My mother would always refer to a male blackbird by its English name, but use the Irish term for the female, as she doesn't have her own specific name otherwise. So a blackbird and a céirseach. (I do this now too )

I like the Ciara spelling best OP, but then it doesn't cause any confusion here in Ireland.

@lizzieant there it is "céirseach" in Ó Dónaill. Dinneen has "ciairseach" and "céirseach" as an other spelling.
dil.ie/8501 has céirsech, ciarsech
I'm at war with my phone's spell check, sorry.

Thanks SeanChailleach. Ciarseach translates as mistle thrush too it seems.