Help me rank my name shortlist so far!

[fr4zzledmum]

I'm only 15 weeks but I love thinking of names! For context, we're in Wales and already have a DD with a Welsh first name and Irish middle name [Irish last name from DH but he's Welsh].

Here's my current rankings for the names on my lost so far - I'd be interested to see how other people would rank:

Girls
1 - Delyth
2 - Ffion
3 - Enaid (en-eyed)
4 - Della
5 - Eirlys (ey-er-lis)
6 - Olwen
7 - Haf
8 - Celyn (kel-in)

Boys
1 - Dylan (duh-lan)
2 - Dewi
3 - Howell
4 - Gryff
5 - Ralph
6 - Bryn

Of girls list I like Della and Eirlis best.

Boys I like Dylan

I love Welsh names - lovely lists!

I would rank them

1. Ffion
2. Celyn
3. Della
4. Delyth
5. Eirlys

Im not so keen on Olwyn, Enaid, or Haf.
Other Welsh girls names I love are Carys and Seren.

boys -

1. Dylan
2. Gryff
3. Bryn
4. Dewi
5. Ralph
6. Howell

Other Welsh boys names I love are Rhys, Ioan and Neirin.

I like Delyth, Olwen and Haf (but this one only as middle)
I like Bryn, Dylan, Dewi form you boys list.

I love Enaid and Gryff.

Gotta be della! What a great name.

1 - Delyth - 60 year old's name
2 - Ffion - very popular but seems a bit like a 40 yr old's name
3 - Enaid (en-eyed) - not a name
4 - Della - not Welsh. Dela might do.
5 - Eirlys (ey-er-lis) - not pronounced like that
6 - Olwen - ok, very old name.
7 - Haf - ok but a filler middle name
8 - Celyn (kel-in) - masculine word for holly

1 - Dylan (duh-lan) - 60 year old's name
2 - Dewi - David and seems due for a comeback
3 - Howell - anglicised form of Hywel
4 - Gryff - weird spelling. Griff or Gruff would be better
5 - Ralph - not Welsh
6 - Bryn - 60 year old's name

Do not spell Olwen as Olwyn. It's the Welsh word for Wheel.

I'm neither Welsh nor Irish. I struggled to pronounce any of the girls names, except Della. Where you have put how they are pronounced- its far from what I thought in my head. Is Dewi pronounced David 😕?
From your list, I'd pick Della, Dylan or Ralph.

@CJ4713 , Imagine someone like Jonathan Ross (he says his own name as Woss) saying Derry.

Uppercase indicates the stressed syllable.
Approximate because the sound isn't quite the same.
Delyth - DEL-ith
Ffion - FEE-onn
Enaid (en-eyed) - not a name but a word meaning soul. ENN-ighd
Dela DEL-ah. Della would be DELL-ah (LL doesn't have an L sound)
Eirlys - approximately EYRR-liss
Olwen - OL-wenn
Haf - approximately Ha(r)v (approx like English 'halve')
Celyn (KELL-in) - masculine word for holly

Dylan -DUH-lann
Dewi - as before. approximately DEH-wy
Hywel - approximately HUH-well
Griff/Gruff - Griff (I'd say gryff as 'gruff')
Ralph (not Welsh) - reads as Ralf
Bryn - Brinn

Congratulations!

I am not very familiar with Welsh names, but from your list I like Della and Gryff the best.

@DaNiYmaOHydImagine someone like Jonathan Ross (he says his own name as Woss) saying Derry.

The OP added the word David after Dewi, hence I thought that was how it was pronounced in Welsh.

I knew a couple of them weren't Welsh - but gave the context of us living in Wales for the number of Welsh names on the list.

In terms of Enaid not being a name knew this also but fits in with the name we gave our daughter.

I think if we went with Delyth, we'd likely have Della as a nickname.

@CJ4713 , the way Jonathan Ross says Derry is how Dewi is pronounced.

Dewi is the name of our patron saint a.k.a St David.
David in the Bible is Dafydd. (DAV-ith, th like in with/them)
Diminutives like Deio (approx DEY-oh) and Deian (approx. DEY-ann) are also used.
They tend to be popular in trends, and Dewi hasn't been used much for about 50 years.

@fr4zzledmum , Enaid seems a bit strange as a name as it's soul/spirit, seems vaguely morbid. Della is ok and I don't think anyone would say it phonetically.

(Ella looks like someone Welsh saying Maybe informally e.g. 'Ella a'i fory'/Maybe I'll go tomorrow )

Love Delyth. She would likely get Del as a nickname at school if that matters.

Howell is lovely in a Welsh accent

Del is the obvious shortening but I'm not keen. Del Boy.

Shortening Delyth to Della seems like calling Charlotte Sharla.

I love Delyth and it was a serious contender for DD.

From your list I like Delyth and Eirlys most, with Haf and Ffion a close 3rd and 4th

Boys - love Dylan (like it for a girl too). Not so keen on the rest of your boys names. I love Dil (Dilwyn nn Ianto), Geraint, Aneurin, Elis and Myrddin/Merlin

@TheCountessofLocksley , how do you get Ianto from Dilwyn???

Ianto was a nickname for names meaning John (Evan, Ieuan, Iwan, Ian etc) but is now used as a given name. Dilwyn is a granddad's name.

I don't know, it's just the accepted norm in my family, apart from my uncle all subsequent Dilwyn's have bern Ianto

My uncle Goronyw is Ronnie, my aunt Bronwen is Bonnie and my aunt Angharad is Harri. My mum is Cerys known as Kitty. Names evolve there are no hard and fast rules.

And as for names belonging to a "grandad" or a "60 year old". All names will eventually - as the parent you decide if granny chic is your thing.

@TheCountessofLocksley , I've only heard Goronwy (I assume you meant that spelling) shortened to Gron. Not much used, but I quite like it. Ronnie sounds like a typical name for a little boy.
I know a Bonny and Broni (both Bronwen), and Angharads called Hari/Harri

Nicknames evolve, and if Dilwyn is Ianto, it's no different to going from Dilwyn to Johnno or Spike or something.

As for grandad/grandma names, imagine if you saw a thread and it had
Girls: Beryl, Debra, Sheila, Sharon, Rebecca, Ethel or Beverley?
Boys: Gordon, Alan, Howard, Darren, Ryan, Brian or Arthur?

Wouldn't you think it was a bit weird?

I'm in Wales too - I like Della & Celyn best for girls, Haf would be a nice middle name I think.
Not overly keen on any of your boys name's sorry! Would prob say Dylan or Ralph if I had to pick. Macsen is my favourite Welsh boy name although very popular now. I love Ioan too.

@DaNiYmaOHyd think you forgot the words 'in my opinion'.

girls

Haf
Celyn

Boys

Gryff
Howell (but I prefer it spelt the Welsh way which is Hywel)

Yes, i did mean Goronwy, thank you for spotting the typo.

No, i wouldn't be surprised by those names. They might nit all be to my taste, but good manners prevail and i wouldn't say anything unless specifically invited to - and even then i'd be positive as names mean a lot to people for many different reasons.

I hope @fr4zzledmum finds a name that is just right for her family and the new baby regardless of what random strangers on the internet think.

@TheCountessofLocksley , the vowels in names often get interchanged, quite easy to do when typing but something like Eirlys might get written as Eyrlis every now and then.

Better to point out on an anonymous forum than wait until the child is named than finding out that you've named her 'Wheel'.

Dylan was very popular as a boy's name in the 1960s so a little girl called Dylan might get a lot of 'That's my Dad/Grandad/Uncle's name'.

@rhubarbby , to some of them. Some of what I posted is fact (e.g. Olwyn = Wheel).
Something like Enaid being a bit morbid is possibly an 'IMO', but my first thought was 'Soul' and 'God rest her soul'. AFAIK it isn't a name.

Entries on Welsh Baby Names sites are often dodgy. There's an article on here that was corrected but it originally had Adda, the Welsh form of Adam, listed as a girl's name.

@DaNiYmaOHyd fair enough and you made a lot of good points. I just thought you were very harsh on the list of names. I did look up Enaid and does come up as a name. I appreciate the purism.

For what it is worth I think Eirlys is beautiful OP.

Girls

4 - Della
8 - Celyn (kel-in)

Boys
1 - Dylan (duh-lan)
5 - Ralph