Help protect children from gaming harms.

Take our survey

Please or to access all these features

Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

Thoughts on the baby name Carla with Spanish pronunciation?

119 replies

FLAMENCOQUEEN · 06/08/2026 11:22

In Spanish i love it - it reminds me of ELITE (A show i like) and carla from scrubs, but i prefer ELITE pronounciation (CARR-LAH) - in english i dont like it, too old lady lol _ thoughts????? coming back to me after watching Elite and a few videos on leanring spanish

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Shloopie · Yesterday 00:30

The robot is incorrect. It was said that 'luck and look are more likely to sound the same'. Software update required. Current software clearly faulty.

Mandarinclementine · Yesterday 02:21

DeeNiall · Yesterday 00:23

@Mandarinclementine , I can only go by what you post. If you say you say you say Emma as EM-ah then you are not saying it as /ˈem.ə/.

You can say " It’s too prescriptive." but if I need a definition of a pronunciation I look it up.
It probably won't sound the same when all English speakers say it and I'm not saying it should.

@RaraRachael , given that I've read things like "Luck/Luke and look are more likely to sound the same." I used the IPA to show that they don't.
You don't need to understand it, it was just to back up my 'Not true'.

Here is an example where the last syllable of a word, cheetah, is pronounced as a schwa (IPA is included). The speakers say it differently from one another depending on their accent, but it’s a schwa in both cases.

I personally say it more like the UK speaker and would transcribe that sound as ah.
To me, the US speaker is making more of an uh sound.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/cheetah

Maybe you thought I meant a different sound when I wrote ah? This sort of transcription doesn’t work well across different accents unfortunately.

cheetah

1. a wild animal of the cat family, with yellowish-brown fur and black spots…

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/cheetah

supercrone · Yesterday 08:00

DeeNiall · 08/08/2026 22:51

It's not an alternative, it's how it's usually said in English. That's why you get brand names like 'Tayla Maid'.

I've never heard of Tayla Maid. Also isn't it more that it's how it's said in some English accents? I speak English, I don't say it like that, neither does anyone around me.

schnubbins · Yesterday 12:19

If I had had a daughter she would have been named Carla and pronounced Carrr-la with a rhotic R but easy for me as I'm Irish and live in Southern Germany where they also roll the R!
Carla is a beautiful name .

HelpmaBoabb · Yesterday 13:37

supercrone · 08/08/2026 19:53

Look, Luke, and luck are all distinct sounds to me

How do Luke and Look sound different?

Mandarinclementine · Yesterday 13:58

HelpmaBoabb · Yesterday 13:37

How do Luke and Look sound different?

Look sounds like this to me
https://forvo.com/word/look/#en
(the second speaker rather than the first).

Luke has a longer vowel sound
https://forvo.com/word/luke/

I do know someone who pronounces look, book and cook to rhyme with Luke so it obviously depends on accent, but I think in most areas they don’t rhyme.

In my area (in the south of Ireland) the word luck is pronounced the same way as look.

Mandarinclementine · Yesterday 14:09

When I say most areas I mean English speaking areas worldwide, not just the UK btw. I’m not sure of what the division is like within the UK.

whatwouldlilacerullodo · Yesterday 19:21

DeeNiall · 06/08/2026 20:39

@whatwouldlilacerullodo , the OP isn't having a baby.
@EmpressaurusKitty , that was KarolGFan Adriana or Lorena for a character in my creative writing? | Mumsnet.

That's even more bonkers, thanks for clarifying

supercrone · Yesterday 22:00

HelpmaBoabb · Yesterday 13:37

How do Luke and Look sound different?

I didn't know the phonetic alphabet so I can't describe it. But they are very different.

DeeNiall · Yesterday 23:44

@supercrone , It's a made up name.

@HelpmaBoabb , the oo in look sounds like the oo in good or foot.
The u in Luke sounds like the oo in loot or food, or the ui in suit.
Luck rhymes with tuck.

User6761 · Yesterday 23:51

DeeNiall · Yesterday 23:44

@supercrone , It's a made up name.

@HelpmaBoabb , the oo in look sounds like the oo in good or foot.
The u in Luke sounds like the oo in loot or food, or the ui in suit.
Luck rhymes with tuck.

I think the confusion comes because there is only one 'oo' sound in most (all?) Scottish accents. As a Scottish parent in England I couldn't understand my child's phonics sheet when it had oo listed twice - one with a picture of the moon, the other with a book.

In Scottish accents moon, book, look, food etc all gave the same oo sound - as does Luke, fluke etc.

The teacher actually wrote in my child's reading diary one time that he was slow to decide on which oo sound to say when reading - I wrote a reply that I was happy for him to say either as I've been using only one my entire life!

supercrone · Today 04:08

Mandarinclementine · Yesterday 13:58

Look sounds like this to me
https://forvo.com/word/look/#en
(the second speaker rather than the first).

Luke has a longer vowel sound
https://forvo.com/word/luke/

I do know someone who pronounces look, book and cook to rhyme with Luke so it obviously depends on accent, but I think in most areas they don’t rhyme.

In my area (in the south of Ireland) the word luck is pronounced the same way as look.

Edited

I'm from the South of Ireland too but look and luck are different

RaraRachael · Today 07:55

@User6761I had to put on a faux English accent if I was teaching the long/short oo sound.
Also with words that are supposed to sound the same like weather/whether, Wales/whales etc

Mandarinclementine · Today 10:37

supercrone · Today 04:08

I'm from the South of Ireland too but look and luck are different

Yes, lots of different accents in Ireland like there are in the UK of course 😊

Going way off the point of the thread now, but google tells me it’s to do with something called the foot-strut split.

This separates the short vowel in words like foot (/ʊ/) from the vowel in words like strut (/ʌ/).

Accents with the split use two different vowel sounds. Put sounds different from putt, and book doesn’t rhyme with buck.

Areas without the split use the same short vowel sound (/ʊ/). Put and putt sound the same, and foot can rhyme with cut.

There was this handy map, which showed that some areas of Ireland (ROI) didn’t have the split and others are mixed. (Mind you, I’m not sure how accurate it is, as I’m pretty sure some Dublin accents do have the split but that’s not shown 🤔)

What was interesting to me is that I live in one of the light purple areas where the split is ‘mixed’. (When I said south of Ireland I really meant south! 😁)

It’s interesting to me because while look and luck sound the same in my accent as I mentioned upthread, I do actually differentiate foot/strut, book/buck, put/putt etc. So a partial split it seems?

Thoughts on the baby name Carla with Spanish pronunciation?
supercrone · Today 11:07

Mandarinclementine · Today 10:37

Yes, lots of different accents in Ireland like there are in the UK of course 😊

Going way off the point of the thread now, but google tells me it’s to do with something called the foot-strut split.

This separates the short vowel in words like foot (/ʊ/) from the vowel in words like strut (/ʌ/).

Accents with the split use two different vowel sounds. Put sounds different from putt, and book doesn’t rhyme with buck.

Areas without the split use the same short vowel sound (/ʊ/). Put and putt sound the same, and foot can rhyme with cut.

There was this handy map, which showed that some areas of Ireland (ROI) didn’t have the split and others are mixed. (Mind you, I’m not sure how accurate it is, as I’m pretty sure some Dublin accents do have the split but that’s not shown 🤔)

What was interesting to me is that I live in one of the light purple areas where the split is ‘mixed’. (When I said south of Ireland I really meant south! 😁)

It’s interesting to me because while look and luck sound the same in my accent as I mentioned upthread, I do actually differentiate foot/strut, book/buck, put/putt etc. So a partial split it seems?

Really interesting

User6761 · Today 12:53

RaraRachael · Today 07:55

@User6761I had to put on a faux English accent if I was teaching the long/short oo sound.
Also with words that are supposed to sound the same like weather/whether, Wales/whales etc

Haha I can relate to putting on the fake accent - not with my own child but I do have to sometimes when volunteer reading in the local school. Honestly, I am genuinely impressed you taught phonics in England. I think I'd have a class of 5 year olds all reading in a Scottish accent 😂.

I do always pronounce the 'wh' 'properly' however - I mean weather and whether are not the same word! 😂. My child does unfortunately still say 'blue wales' etc 😭 I can but try.

User6761 · Today 12:53

Mandarinclementine · Today 10:37

Yes, lots of different accents in Ireland like there are in the UK of course 😊

Going way off the point of the thread now, but google tells me it’s to do with something called the foot-strut split.

This separates the short vowel in words like foot (/ʊ/) from the vowel in words like strut (/ʌ/).

Accents with the split use two different vowel sounds. Put sounds different from putt, and book doesn’t rhyme with buck.

Areas without the split use the same short vowel sound (/ʊ/). Put and putt sound the same, and foot can rhyme with cut.

There was this handy map, which showed that some areas of Ireland (ROI) didn’t have the split and others are mixed. (Mind you, I’m not sure how accurate it is, as I’m pretty sure some Dublin accents do have the split but that’s not shown 🤔)

What was interesting to me is that I live in one of the light purple areas where the split is ‘mixed’. (When I said south of Ireland I really meant south! 😁)

It’s interesting to me because while look and luck sound the same in my accent as I mentioned upthread, I do actually differentiate foot/strut, book/buck, put/putt etc. So a partial split it seems?

Love this, very interesting

RaraRachael · Today 14:34

@User6761the kids couldn't understand me speaking French either despite me having had a native teacher and a good accent.
I had to put on the faux accent again and say things like, "Oovrai la pawte"

shelbysummers · Today 14:43

RaraRachael · 07/08/2026 12:29

I've always wondered what a schwa sound is.
I now know that I don't say it. To me Emma is exactly that Emm-ah, not Emm-uh.

Thanks @DeeNiall

I don't roll Rs but I do pronounce them. I wouldn't say murrrrder but kind of swallow the R sound - very hard to explain.

This made me chuckle. Reminds me of Love Island a couple of years ago when Uma (North London) is saying “Who’s Emm-uh?” Then Nicole (Wales) shrieks “WHO’s Emm-aaaaaaaaaah?!”

New posts on this thread. Refresh page