Aoife?

[Mummy2beexx]

Expecting baby 2 this June and she is a girl :)

We already have Finn our DS, our surname is Irish due to DH’s family being Irish so we like picking Irish names to go with our surname and because I love a lot of them!

My only worry is people will constantly ask our DD (if we name her this) how to spell or pronounce her name? We live in the north of UK, not Ireland

DH assured me it’s becoming more popular so everyone by the time she gets to school will know of it and not to worry but of course it’s just on my mind!

Do any of you have an Aoife? Does she get badgered with pronunciation and spelling questions?

I really love the name it’s beautiful so I don’t think I’ll let this get in the way but it’ll be reassuring if a lot of people say that it’s quite known now

I knew an Aoife at school in SE England 20+ years ago. It's very well known.

I think everyone knows how to say it - but sometimes they get overwhelmed by vowels and spell it Aiofe or something. Not the worst thing!

It's lovely, by the way. Would love to use it one day myself, but our DD is Niamh and I worry about them sounding similar... But with Finn it's perfect.

I live in SW and although I would know it was Irish I wouldn't have the foggiest idea how to pronounce it! I would guess Ay-o-fee.

I'm genuinely amazed you've never heard the name used or met one, it's really popular and has been rising in popularity for the past 20 years.

I'd have no idea how to pronounce it ....
... Ay o fee?!

And I'm in the south of England

I am irish in ireland but find it hard to believe anybody with any small amount of linguistic ability would struggle.

Eg, "Bernadette Rostenkowski Wolowitz" taught me how to pronounce a lot of other names!! You see patterns. One name can give you some rules of pronunciation if you hear it and have it written down.

Can you explain the phonetic spelling then @JoyLurking9to5?

Well aoi is ee

The e at the end is not silent it's an ah sound.

Now you could guess how to pronounce Caoimhe perhaps?

So in Irish

aoi = ee

e = ah

Is that correct?

E at the end of a name is "ah" - cant think of when e at the end of a name isnt "ah"
My irish isnt great but i can take a good guess at names (mostly)

I wouldn't really call the vowel sound at the end of Aoife an 'ah' sound JoyLurking9to5?

You're right, it's the same vowel sound as at the end of Caoimhe, or Saoirse, but it's not the same as the ending of Ciara or Órla (which I'd write Oar-lah), for example. I've linked the pronunciation of Saoirse here so people can listen to the vowel sound at the end - it's the same as the one in Aoife. I'd write it more as an 'eh' than an 'ah', but I know that's very subjective. (We may even be talking about the same sound) However, I do sometimes hear people putting quite a strong 'ah' at the end of Aoife, Saoirse etc and it's not correct in Irish afaik.

www.teanglann.ie/en/fuaim/saoirse

Or another Irish word, aife, where the second syllable is the same as Aoife.

www.teanglann.ie/en/fuaim/aife

Goes perfectly with Finn! That's my boys name and Aoife is one of my girls names. I think you might get a few dodgy spellings but pronouncing it should be fine.

Aoife was one of our top 3 for DD. DH is irish background and has irish surname. Although we live in London where i think the pronunciation and spelling is well known due to the number of irish families, im from Yorkshire originally and none of my family knew how to pronounce it. I had visions of her being mangled into "ey-off" like ey-up! We have no plans to move to Ireland so we decided to go for a name that works in gaelic and english instead. It is such a lovely name though so if you like it enough, you should go for it!

Imo as you don't live in Ireland it is fairer on your dd to give her a name people can pronounce and spell where she lives...

🙄

I went to college with an Aoife 20 years ago. No one knew how to pronounce or spell her name, but I accept a lot may have changed since then! I think it's a beautiful name.

@JoyLurking9to5 isn’t it Keeva?

@lawandgin

I went to college with an Aoife 20 years ago. No one knew how to pronounce or spell her name, but I accept a lot may have changed since then! I think it's a beautiful name.

Did they ask?

Very well know in England. Go for it.

Lots of relatives from way back in my family called 'Effie' short for Euphemia, I love the name but agree she will have a lifetime of spelling her name which could be annoying. I have this with my name so every time I say it I have to spell it out as it's Gaelic. Wouldn't change it though!!

You say you live in the north of the UK - so Scotland?

It’s not massively popular here (in Scotland, the north of the UK), but we can generally work out Gaelic names.

My DD is at school with an Eefi which I don't really like.

I think the correct spelling of Aoife is so much prettier. It's a beautiful name.

I didn't know how to pronounce it!! I have worked in lots of large secondary schools.

Never come across it and wouldn't have a clue how to pronounce. South east.

I think people who say that everyone knows how to pronounce it thinks everyone knows what they know. It is popular in parts of England but unless you intend your child to never leave the country, you are correct, people will struggle. Not a problem in my mind but if that is your concern, I agree, many people will not know how. Globally, people will have not a clue

Globally, people will have not a clue

Isn’t that the case for most names, though?