Anonymous wrote:For the love of all things holy, please pair that with a vanilla, easy-to-pronounce middle name so your dc can go by that in middle school. Kieran Jack Thomas, or whatever. Some kids get so down with their names being butchered by every sub.

I know two people who became frustrated with butchered names in middle school. One changed his pronunciation and as an adult still goes by that change. The other is in 8th grade and her mother reported that the kid was crying over having her name butchered yet again by a sub.

Anonymous wrote:I know Kieran is the more popular spelling in the US and Ciaran could have some pronunciation issues.

My concern (and I know this sounds silly) is how similar it looks to the name Karen. I actually think Karen is a lovely name but know many women who have not enjoyed the past few years as a Karen.

Should I even be worried? This is for a boy.

You should love the name you choose and not worry about it. If you are worried about this name, pick another one.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tells me “Trying too hard to be unique”.

How is it unique? Ciaran is a wildly-popular name in Ireland.

In my family, most of whom are second-to-fourth-generation Americans from Ireland and Wales, Americanizing the spelling of a Gaelic name would be the move that would have others scratching their heads. We spelled our children's names the Gaelic way-- Niamh (not Neve), Aine (not Anya), and Cillian (not Killian). It isn't unique; it is honoring our heritage.

Hate to break it to you, but Ciaran is not “wildly popular” in Ireland. If you wanted that, you’d name your kid Jack.

https://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/ep/p-ibn/irishbabiesnames2022/mainresults/

That's the statistic for 2022. You do realize there are far more people born in years outside of 2022 than there are born in 2022?

Ciaran is the name of 26 different saints, and it has been a very popular name in Ireland, especially in certain regions, since at least the 1950s. Taking into account that I still have aunts, uncles, and many dozens of cousins living across the Republic, and I am intimately involved with one of the societies of Ireland, Iso I interact with hundreds of Irish people,, 'll stand by my claim that it is a wildly popular name in Ireland.

Anonymous wrote:Are you Irish, from Ireland? If not, please don't.

No Liam, no Finn, no Rowan, no Aiden either?

Unless you are indigenous (which I am not) 99% of names are going to be tied to a country and/our culture outside of the US.

What’s your kids name? Unless you’ve given them a made up American name like McKinsleigh or Braxton it’s roots are going to be most likely foreign.

I’m not naming my kid Tadhg.

And how do Americans pronounce the Celtics? You have your answer. We aren’t in Ireland.

My nephews name is Ciaran and it's not that big a deal?

I’d go with Kieran. The name is on my list if I ever have another! I like Kiera/Ciara, but I realized with the C spelling, most people would think I named her after the singer. I think most would pronounce Ciaran a similar way.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For the love of all things holy, please pair that with a vanilla, easy-to-pronounce middle name so your dc can go by that in middle school. Kieran Jack Thomas, or whatever. Some kids get so down with their names being butchered by every sub.

I’m so baffled by the people who consider this name out there?

You’d think I was naming my kid something like Balthazar. Does everyone in DC name their kids top ten only?

I don't think Kieran is an "out-there" name (I do think Ciaran is too much because it will be mispronounced by like 95% of Americans). I know very few people in DC with "top ten" kids names, and I think those names are nice too.

My nephew is name Kieran.

Americans have an easier time with the anglicized Kieran than Ciaran. Our DS (who has very Irish surname from DH) is Kieran. I always wondered if it's odd to have such an Irish surname with an anglicized spelling of first name. But recently hired Irish (in Ireland) colleague is Kieran with a K, so I guess Kieran is okay in Ireland too.

Are you Irish, from Ireland? If not, please don't.

There are also a lot of south Asian boys named Kiran. It’s very popular.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How do you want people to pronounce it? I’d read Ciaran as se-yaran.

Kieran and Ciaran are pronounced the same way. But I think you’ve given me my answer.

Well, I also learned how to write Niamh correctly, so, not all is lost… just the first time saw this spelling. So if the traditional spelling is Ciaran (pronounced Kieran), I and others like me meeting a Ciaran for the first time, will learn.

There are two Ciaran/Kierans at my son's former school -- one spelled each way.

People have no issue with either version. Maybe at first they're like "See-ran?" or whatever, but it's actually an easy name to say once you know how to say it.

Anonymous wrote:How do you want people to pronounce it? I’d read Ciaran as se-yaran.

Kieran and Ciaran are pronounced the same way. But I think you’ve given me my answer.