How would you pronounce Cosima?

[Applesandall]

With the emphasis on the first syllable (COS-immah/COZ-immah)

OR the second syllable - like Co-SEE-ma

?

Me and DH keep coming back to this name. The only Cosima I've personally known pronounces it COZ-immah, so that's what seems natural to me and makes sense with my admittedly very limited knowledge of Italian language. But I've taken a quick look online, and it seems like lots of Americans put the stress on the second syllable. I'm wondering what people in the U.K. instinctively pronounce it as?

I'm not bothered about whether people use an S sound or more of a Z sound.

I’ve never heard the name but Coh-see-ma, middle emphasis is what I’d assume reading it.

Well, I only mentioned it because of the context!

@KickAssAngel interesting!

And I totally agree about the posh thing - I'm just an overthinker by nature, and whilst I don't care what people think of me, I can't help but worry that maybe my future daughter will care 😰

I would put the emphasis on COS.

I think it's a fab name - I'm also keen to know what Cosimas get for diminutives/nicknames! Cozzy?

coss-eema

diminutives?

Mimi is the usual one.

COZ-immuh

And the one I know is Cozzie for short

It's more common in English speaking countries than anywhere else (fewer than 5 born per year in Italy in the last 10 years, and most of them are Cosima Damiana after the saints as are the boy equivalents (Cosimo Damiano) which are a bit more common.
In Latin American Spanish it's pronounced with the stress on the second syllable apparently, but everywhere else the first Coz'ima.

Cossimma with emphasis on the first syllable. Lovely name. I think Nigella Lawson called her child this.

Cos EE ma

I would say COZ-ih-ma in English with a short O sound as in "cot". If I were attempting an Italian pronunciation, I would say COZ-ee-mah with more of an accent.

As far the class thing: it's an Italian name. Upper-class English people don't own it - or at least, they shouldn't. I do resent how names from other languages like Italian and Greek are somehow seen of the preserve as the upper classes. As if there aren't any working-class Italians who have such names.

co (like in cough) SEE ma (like in magic)

Its origin is Greek.
Hardly used at all in Italy. Fewer than 500 in total registered in the last 100 years.

Yes, Nigeria has a Cosima, and a Bruno iirc.

Cosimo de Medici springs to mind. Agreed, not a v used name in Italy today. I really like it tho OP, forget the class thing.

Co-SEE-ma here, like other people have said cos the character in orphan black is the only one I know

I'd say Coss-imma

But if it's going to bother you if you need to keep correcting people's pronunciation or spelling then chose a different name, as it's likely to be something you'll have to do on occasion with this name.

coseema

I would pronounce it

ɪksˈtriːmli pɒʃ

I suspect you/she will have to get used to correcting. We chose a Greek girls name that we figured would be easy for Brits but people get it wrong more than half the time on first try.

In Latin American Spanish it's pronounced with the stress on the second syllable apparently, but everywhere else the first Coz'ima.

Was just thinking about this - I've seen it spelled Cósima in Spanish, to specifically put the stress on the first syllable as with no accent it would default to co-SEE-mah. As far as I know it's pretty rarely used in Spanish, though; maybe an "import" from Italian, etc.

Sorry no comments on how to pronounce it, but as I am Italian I just want to add it's def not a posh name in Italy. It's an old fashion regional name, hardly used in rich circles, quite the opposite!

Ah, ok. I had no idea so I looked it up in a pronunciation across languages online dictionary.
@Mardyface

COS-immah

I’ve only heard it with the stress on the first syllable in the UK, as it’s said in Italy, which would make sense as it’s quite a popular name for young Italians over here.

Lovely name.

I wouldn’t worry in the slightest about it being posh - all sorts of people now give their daughters names like Arabella and Ophelia - so I don’t think a long name ending in a reads as posh anymore.