which indian girl name?

[user1473276264]

meenakshi or indira for a half indian (half white) girl? are either very difficult to pronounce for british people? both are very sentimental names so i'd love to use one of them.

also if there are any other indian girls' names you vastly prefer, i'd love to hear them!

I like them both but prefer Meenakshi and Meena is a cute nickname

@Welcometothejingles

The names of girls/women I know of with Indian heritage: Bhavna Roshana Rukshana (Roxanne) Anita Sita Geeta Pallavi Meera Maya Veena Meena Sara Tara Rita Tanya Tina Sabina Yasmin

Rukhsana is not pronounced like Roxanne. It is Rukh-sana (versus Rox-Ann)

I took that to mean she’d adopted “Roxanne” as a nickname, @Velvetscrunchy

I like Indira, maybe with the nickname indie, although I also like Meena (so am no help!)

Could you do what a pp suggests and use both?

Both are lovely

These have similar vibe to Meenakshi -
Riyanshi
Rayanshi

I was told it Means cheerful / ray of sunshine

I've always loved the name Indira, I'd use it myself if I wasn't so obviously not Indian. I think it works brilliantly as a cross culture name, much more so than the other name. Plus I like it better

Popular names at my DS’s school for Indian girls are generally short and often ending in an a. E.g., Arya, Ayva, Meesha, Shreeya, Siya, Maya, Sita, Amaya, etc. Anglicised names are also popular (Ella, Anni, etc). It does get a bit samey with so many with a similar sound, but all of the names are quite easy to pronounce. Indira is a nice easy name too, and is different from the current popular names.

@BrutusMcDogface

I took that to mean she’d adopted “Roxanne” as a nickname, *@Velvetscrunchy*

Ahhh. I did not get that.

OP I think Indira is very elegant and Meenakshi is very cute. Both lovely and unusual and I agree that they are both easy to pronounce as they are written (unlike for example some Celtic names which sound nothing like they are spelled!) I don't think people would struggle with either so you should feel free to use either, as you want.

I also love Satya and Sadhana, I have dear friends with those names and they also have beautiful meanings.

How do you say Meenakshi?
I fear it is like Lata or Baksho, which look like they are easy to read in English, but are pronounced quite differently.
There are dozens of websites offering name pronunciation, but then using machine readers which reproduce the same errors an English speaker would make.

I would go with Indira (my grandmother's name too)- because of Indira Gandhi, I think pronunciation would be fine. In my experience, British people struggle with the kshi sound.

I really like Ashni, Meera, Simran, Roshni, Janki, Nimisha and Sita

I love Meenakshi with the nn Meena.

Both names are gorgeous, as are the nicknames. Honestly I would recommend you just go with the one you prefer the most.

@elfran

I prefer Indira, if only because I primarily associate Meenakshi with the selfish sister in law from A Suitable Boy (fab book though)!

Haha yes me too!

However, I prefer Meenakshi. It's a lovely name and Meena is a great short form which is easy to say and spell.

Indira is nice but I see it as more middle aged? - but Indi is a great short form.

Both are good OP!

Meenakshi is lovely! I prefer it to Indira

I’d find Indira easier to pronounce. I have an Indian background but never spoke any Indian languages at home, was always English including between my parents. Weirdly I therefore can’t pronounce my own name “properly” to a Hindi speaker. I know I would pronounce Meenakshi wrong - I can hear the sounds in akshi but can’t then say it.

Personally I would avoid Indira, only because in the West the name is primarily associated with Indira Ghandi who was, let’s say, divisive. It’s too political, as though you want to be associated with her. If you do, go for it.

There’s also the issue of IN-dir-a versus In-DEER-a.

I like Meenakshi, and have a friend by that name. I’ve never known anyone to struggle with pronunciation. Meena is lovely.

Other options:

Amrit
Sita
Aryanna
Fainaz (prob not suitable?)
Simran
Anamika

My friend is called Yamini. Pretty, and means something like 'night sky', I think.

Indira is awful,akin to being called Adolf for many indians.Indira Ghandi was a brutal evil woman who authorised the genocide of thousands of Sikhs from 1984 till her death.

I know a Meenakshi. No-one has any difficulty prounouncing her name. It's very pretty

I also love Lakshmi, which is quite similar.

Never heard Meenakshi before OP but it’s lovely! I think either would be fab names for your daughter!

To be honest op, even the most simplest and phonetically spelled, non British names tend to be mispronounced by some/ most people even after they're corrected multiple times.
Go with your favourite out of the two, both are lovely. I prefer Meenakshi it's very pretty

Of the two Indira is probably the easiest for most Brits to pronounce but both are lovely and Meena is a really sweet abbreviation, especially for a little one. Having said that, I've got a difficult to pronounce English name and people catch on pretty quick so I wouldn't worry too much.