Using a Scottish name if you can't pronounce if perfectly

[Mamma37447]

DH is half Scottish, I'm not. We love several Scottish names, like Mhari, both the spelling and the pronunciation. DH's pronunciation is ok, mine is quite flat however hard I try, MIL's pronunciation is wonderful, the way she kind of rolls the Mh- and -ri.

Is it silly to use it even if I can't pronounce it perfectly?

I don't really roll my Rs either I assumed it was an accent thing.

As I've just said I'm scottish my Rs don't roll I wouldn't really worry at all.

It's accent not dialect. Do people knowingly roll their Rs?

What do you mean knowingly?

I really wouldn't go with a name that you can't pronounce, especially if you're going to ignore the fact that mh is pronounuced as a soft v sound. I find it really weird when people do this, it's culturally insensitive. You can literally make up a name if you want, so why use one from a culture that's already been minoritised?
Also, remember, it's not your own name you're picking. Your daughter might not want to have her name corrected all the time, and she might feel weird and embarrassed by the mispronounciation.

The 'r' isn't really rolled in Mairi.
Listen here (scroll down the page, it's alphabetical) - and to 19 more Scottish girls names:
https://learngaelic.scot/fichead-facal/ff-names-girls.jsp

(The link is to the official Board of Gaelic website.)

That link has it pronounced more like Maddy. Where does the 'soft v' thing coming into it? I am Scottish but have no idea what a 'soft' v sounds like as opposed to a regular v.

Make a conscious decision to roll Rs as opposed to just saying the word.
For example, if I said theatre I'd say something like Thea Tuh but my accent is non-rhotic. If I said Stranraer, I'd make an effort to sound the Rs.

I don't mean I'd say StRRanRRaeRR but I would try to sound the R not use the sort of sound I'd use normally.

R rollers will do it naturally I think Most people will use the r in theatre its a soft r no need to roll it .

@EvenStillIWantTo , the soft sound is to do with how the same letter can sound different in different words.
In 'heaven' the v is soft, but in 'vivid' it's strong

@EvenStillIWantTo There is no 'v' sound in the name Mairi. The discussion on this thread is because some people choose to use the vocative case spelling of the name (the form of the word used when talking to someone with the name) rather than the nominative case (the name itself). This is gramatically incorrect, but it has become rather popular. Perhaps people think it looks more interesting? I don't know.

The vocative case of Mairi is spelled Mhairi; in Gaelic, 'mh' is pronounced rather like 'v'. As you can hear from the sound clip, Gaelic is a 'soft-sounding' language; that's where the idea of a 'soft V' comes from.

Of course, people must choose whatever names they like. It's entirely up to them. But, as the 'official' website says, the name is Mairi.

Ahh that makes sense thank you!

Grew up in Glasgow so not Highlands. Varee always.M sound would be Mairi or Marie.

It hurts my ears to hear Scottish names said completely wrongly by people who have chosen the name. See also Catriona.

Oh and also Eilish. I blame Billie for that one.

OK. Soft rhotic R but not a rolled R.
If I said something like 'Fraser' the Rs don't really sound.

Believe it or not, we were taught to at school!

I roll the r at the end of theatre, only a little bit but I roll all rs. I'm Orcadian. Which means I have no idea about how to pronounce gaelic names but would say whatever the person told me their name was.

Most people will use the r in theatre its a soft r no need to roll it .
I'm not Scottish but theatre is [ˈθɪətə] in IPA, no R.

I am Scottish and have a Scottish surname. With the way its spelled I have just accepted that is has been anglicised and always spelled wrong living in England.

In my field we use titles and surnames at work. Working with a fellow Scot they knew how to pronounce my name but everyone else was confused and I had to try and explain the nuances. It never took on though and I just pronounce it the way everyone else does 😂.

I wouldn't. Unfortunately all names with an 'r' are unavailable to me because I can't pronounce it very well...

Menzies?

@Poshjock nah not that one. Even i struggle with that one half the time 😂.

It's not a super common one and it will be outing otherwise id put it up for people to be confused.

I know one Scottish women called Mhairi who pronounces it mah-ree and another Scottish Mhairi who pronounces it vah-ree. I also know a Mairi who pronounces it vah-ree.

So not all Scots have a handle on the correct pronunciation either.

Sharon Horgan has said that the gag was taken directly from her own experience of naming her daughter Sadhbh.

Thanks, this is all really helpful. I like Mairi too and the Mar-ee pronunciation, so I'll ask DH what he thinks.

MIL is in the Highlands. Her R is very soft so it's hard for me to copy!

I love the name but I don't want to mangle it! But it sounds from here like a lot of different pronunciations are used even if they aren't all correct.