How would you pronounce Selah?

[Flutterflybutterby]

A biblical word, the meaning of which is not certain but it's thought to be a musical instruction meaning "to pause; reflect on God". It is quite a well-known name in American Christian communities (I know 4 baby Selahs!) but I assume fairly rare in the UK.

My question is, how would you pronounce this name? The Selahs I know pronounce it differently. Also, do you know any baby Selahs? If so, how do they say the name?

Lastly, do you like it? What sort of middle name do you think goes with it? Two of the Selahs I know have long, classic middle names (think Catherine, Elizabeth type names) and the other two short, snappy, one syllable, cool middle names. What would you choose?

Sell - ah

Instinctively I would have said seeluh. But all the other pronunciations are equally 'right' too, so you are going to always have to tell people how to pronounce it, if you chose it. I like it though - really unusual in the UK I think snd all pronunciations are pretty sounding.

It's a tricky one. In UK people are either going to pronounce it seller or sailor, neither of which works as a girl's name.

See-luh or See-lah or Seh-LAH would work better.

I know one in the UK. They are Christians. They pronounce it SAY - luh.

Sa-La (sa as in the start of Sarah and La and in the start of Lapland)

Or

Just say Cellar in a Welsh accent. 😂

@Thegirlhasnamechanged

I’d probably pronounce it like Cellar until otherwise corrected 😅

Yep, me too

Seelah

Cellar. Or seller. Both the same.

Seh-La, emphasis on second syllable

Seller. I've never heard it before.

Cellar

As in the space under a house.

See-lah.

I don't know anyone with the name but that's how I've heard it pronounced when the Bible is read aloud.

I'd pronounce it to rhyme with fella.

I don't know any and I'm not religious.

Seller. Made me immediately think of Mo Salah who plays for Liverpool and Egypt. Never heard the name before but would have assumed it was male.

Weirdly, I read it as "SEElah" in the bible but as a name I would pronounce it "SAYlah".

@peachgreen

Weirdly, I read it as "SEElah" in the bible but as a name I would pronounce it "SAYlah".

Me too!

What type of middle names do you all think would suit this name?

@steppemum

sellar, but with the stress on the second syllable.

se-LLAR

(I am a Christian, don't know any kids called selah, but that it how we pronounce it if reading Psalms aloud)

This

When I read it in the Bible i say it sill-AH although I don't know if that's correct.

I'd pronounce it as it's written

Seh-lah 2 syllables

Seh (as in Cellar) ah (as in ah)

There's no ay sound nor an ar sound!

And there's definitely no double ee

@Thegirlhasnamechanged

I’d probably pronounce it like Cellar until otherwise corrected 😅

Same for me, that was my first reading.

@steppemum

sellar, but with the stress on the second syllable.

se-LLAR

(I am a Christian, don't know any kids called selah, but that it how we pronounce it if reading Psalms aloud)

All of this

It's a beautiful name

I’d say it Sel ah, exactly as it looks phonetically. It sounds lovely, made me think of Mo Salah, so I’d think it was Arabic.

Sella
Because that's phonetically how it would be pronounced in English.
You'd need to change the spelling to get either of the pronoun IAR ions you mentioned.

It's not very pretty and she'll spend her life explaining it

I would say "SAY-luh"