Reply to Saoirse or Niamh?

Forum Index » Expectant and Postpartum Moms

Reply to "Saoirse or Niamh?"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I'm surprised people are so unfamiliar with these names, but I went to a Jesuit college so maybe it's just my social circle. I don't think they're more unusual than any number of "unique" ethnic names I've been exposed to since moving to DC.
I like Saoirse better, but both are great names.[/quote]

I think the problem is not so much that they are more unusual as that they are less phonetic.  Of all the people I have known with Asian or African first names, only one has had a name whose pronunciation is as far from what it appears to be as some of the Irish names (and even so, half the Asian-Americans I know go by an "easier" nickname anyway because people have such a hard time with their given name).  Celtic spelling is just really different from English spelling.  I love some of these names, but they are definitely going to be challenging for people to pronounce correctly, so if that's a concern, plan accordingly.

I think it is just your social circle.  FWIW, I went to Catholic school for a significant chunk of my education, and I have never known a Saorise or even a Siobhan (although I've taught lots of Shavonnes).  I have a friend who went to Catholic school for almost her entire education, including six years at Notre Dame, and I always tease her that I can't keep her friends straight because they all have Irish names, but even her friends all have the more common Irish-American names like Erin and Shannon.  [/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics