Love Saoirse. I think more people are familiar with it now b/c of Saoirse Ronan. Honestly....yes, she'll have to tell people. But we aren't Irish and aren't looking at names that are that unusual, and we've still dealt with inevitable mispronunciation. People will bungle almost anything. It's not that important.

I am American Irish and there's a girl named Niamh in my daughter's class. Not until this thread did I realize it was pronounced Neave. I wouldn't do it.

p.s. I have an Irish surname as my first name a love it, despite it being mispronounced about 50% of the time - so my threshhold for name confusion is pretty high.

Niamh. I have a cousin with that name.

We went with Bridget after my grandma.

I also like Deirdre, Orla, Ciara, Cara, Aileen, Moira, and Fiona. Had girls with with all those names in my Irish Step Dance classes growing up.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Totally Irish and this thread had totally done before.

Don't do it unless you want to move back to the mother land.

Why set her up for failure?

Being named Saoirse or Niamh will cause a baby to be a failure in life?

No more so than Ja'qua'netta.

If you have never had a sunburn in early April. ..you aren't Irish enough to pull off these names!

And the story behind Saiorse is that it is commonly used politically by IRA sympathsizers.

No and no.

I think it is really nice to make a nod to your culture when naming your child, however I would think very carefully about the position you are putting your child in for the future. It is incredibly difficult to go through life with a name that people can't pronounce. Case in point, there is a child in my child's daycare and even the teachers all pronounce the poor kids name differently.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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.

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.

Interesting. I'm the PP you quoted. I went to school with three Siobhans and know two others. Two of my friends have named their babies Saoirsie. It must just be me.
OP, I still think they're beautiful names and you should go for it although the PP makes valid points about spelling issues. I believe Saoirsie may be a little more familiar (from my own anecdotal experience but I've also seen it on Nameberry more often). There's also an actress with that name. So it's still the name I'd choose

NP - I think it is your circle too I was surprised by your comment about people knowing these names. I grew up just south of Boston in a big Irish-American family, filled with similar families in our neighborhood and town and attended Catholic school and have never heard or seen Saoirse or Niamh.

Anonymous wrote:If you want to reflect an Irish background, then at least spell the name correctly rather than the corrupted American version. I have an Irish name and anyone that I have met in the past 25+ years here that is worth knowing has learned to spell it. Even teachers and faculty and executives at F500 companies.

Regarding Niamh or Saoirse, Saoirse doesn't sit well with me because I'm well aware of the underlying story. However, I love Niamh. I would, of course, be looking to name a brother Diarmuid!

What is the underlying story?

Hi OP. Go with what you like. The important people in your child's life will figure it out. She won't be damaged by having to spell it out for some people. I have an Irish name, I have Irish cousins and we have all travelled and worked here and other countries. Our names are no more difficult than Chinese or Icelandic, etc. It is part of being a US American to bring your heritage to the melting pot.

I like Saoirse a bit better but like Niamh as well.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote: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.

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.

Interesting. I'm the PP you quoted. I went to school with three Siobhans and know two others. Two of my friends have named their babies Saoirsie. It must just be me.
OP, I still think they're beautiful names and you should go for it although the PP makes valid points about spelling issues. I believe Saoirsie may be a little more familiar (from my own anecdotal experience but I've also seen it on Nameberry more often). There's also an actress with that name. So it's still the name I'd choose

[Up]

Anonymous

Baby girl on the way and all of the family has classic Irish names. We are down to the last few choices and I worry these two would be too confusing as she grows up. I'm tempted to go with "neve" instead but that's not the classic spelling. Not sure what to do here but we just aren't drawn to names like Brigid or Claire.

Claire is not an Irish name anyway. It's the French spelling of the Latin "Clare," as in Clare of Assisi, the Italian saint. Most Clares/Claires are named after the saint, not County Clare in Ireland.

BTW, I agree with other PPs--please don't give your baby an Irish name that most people can't spell. I had a good friend who struggled through high school with the name Siobhan; she hated the name.

There are so many lovely and easy-to-spell names like Maura, Maeve, Moira, Shannon, or Kathleen. Why not pick one of those?

Anonymous wrote: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.

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.

Anonymous wrote:Totally Irish and this thread had totally done before.

Don't do it unless you want to move back to the mother land.

Why set her up for failure?

Being named Saoirse or Niamh will cause a baby to be a failure in life?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We use Irish names but "American" spellings. I am from Irrland and have one of those names. It is actually just a joke now and my DH has a grand old time with "Her name is Eva but don't forget the F!"

Aoife! Another one that I like.

I was going to suggest Aoife as well. The spelling is at least somewhat close to the pronunciation that it hopefully wouldn't be mangled too badly.