(no subject)

[neverstarsburn.livejournal.com]

I was thinking the other day (this is why I asked about Declan before) about a time when my exexboyfriend and I were discussing names, and all of his were traditional irish, and we're both of irish decent. since then I've kind of begun liking gaelic names more and more, so here are some of my favourites (with pronunciations where unclear):

male:

Cael
Caelan
Declan (this was my exes favourite)
Kiernan (his other fave)
Fionn (finn)
Tiarnan (teer-nawn)


female:

Aoibheann (said EE-ven means beautiful, vision, and dream, i think it would be pronounced wrong too often to use though)
Catriona (kat-tree-oh-na)
Liadan (lee-a-dawn)
Emher (ee-mer)


thoughts? I don't know how many I'd honestly use, but these are my favourites. I steered clear of almost all the obvious choices like Sean, Deirdre, and Caitlin as nearly everyone in my extended family has common irish names like those.

Comments

[clutterbang.livejournal.com]

Gaelic.. oh wow, is that who we have to blame for names like this.
Don't worry too much about me hun, we obviously have very different tastes and that's ok, but I always thought those airy-fairy 'ae', 'ie', 'ia' sounds in boy names were made up. Why I think this is because they sound so girly and undecisive.. I just don't get any specific sort of emotional energy from any of them. They seem so empty..

Having said that! Fionn (I would personally go for the Finn spelling, or you could be creative and even go Fin :D) is a freaking GORGEOUS

[clutterbang.livejournal.com]

*A FREAKING gorgeous name I must now consider for my own little bean. I have a Sim called Fin. XD

[neverstarsburn.livejournal.com]

there are anglicized less frivolous versions of almost all these names, but if i'm going to name my kid something from my heritage i'm going to spell it traditionally is i guess how i feel about it.

overall, i probably wouldnt use any of those boy names unless the father really loved one (ie. i'd have named a son Declan for my ex if it had come down to it).
Finn is a great name for sure.

[kilobites.livejournal.com]

I really like Kiernan, and Fionn (I would probably spell it Finn, though). Catriona is great and I think that even people who can't pronounce Gaelic names could pronounce that one.

[neverstarsburn.livejournal.com]

yeah, i really really like catriona, i have alway sconsidered using catherine as a middle name for my daughter in honor of my mother and grandmother, but would consider using catriona as a first name instead actually

[rorylareina.livejournal.com]

I believe Eavan is the simplified/anglicized form of Aoibheann, and I quite like it.

[neverstarsburn.livejournal.com]

Yeah, i've seen that and assumed it was anglicized version, i like it too, but i don't think the spelling looks all that pretty, but I can't think of a way I like better and the original is so complicated.

[chocklit-frog.livejournal.com]

Is the stress on the second or third syllable in Catriona? it's pretty either way though. Declan is my favourite of the boys' names.

[neverstarsburn.livejournal.com]

the second, kat-TREE-oh-na is how i've seen it spelled to be pronounced, i've never heard it outloud actually

[taraemily.livejournal.com]

I love Declan and Fionn (only I would spell it Finn).

[neverstarsburn.livejournal.com]

I generally like names with simple spelling like Finn, but if i were to use an irish name i'd spell it traditionally because i'd be using it in part for tradition, being irish.
I really like Fionn too, more and more all the time, no matter how its spelled. I even like Flynn too, as a variant.

[kitchen-poet.livejournal.com]

Cael is a pet peeve of mine, just because I think kale=veggie, not baby. But that's just me.

I really really love Catriona. (And I agree with the poster above, even people who generally stumble with Gaelic names can pronounce that one.) It is lyrical and lovely. :)

[0o-faerie.livejournal.com]

I believe Catríona is actually pronounced like Catrina, so without the 'oh' sound: Source: Babynamesofireland (http://www.babynamesofireland.com/pages/girl-names-a-c.html). Anyway...I really like the sound of Liadan. So pretty! Aoibheann is amazing too...but no one outside the UK (or outside Ireland, for that matter) will pronounce it the right way, I'm afraid... As for your boy names, I like Fionn (or just Finn) and Cael.

I deleted my earlier comment because the link didn't work.

[ironqueen.livejournal.com]

Catriona is pronounced like Katrina. I love this name, but the people here talked me out of it because it would be pronounced wrong all the time.

[neverstarsburn.livejournal.com]

the gaelic baby name sites (two) i found it on listed it as having the OH pronounced, i wish i had links to them.
frankly, i'd probably pronounce it regardless if i used it. chances are, hardly anyone would have heard of it anyway here on the west coast of the us.

[chocklit-frog.livejournal.com]

Good, because I think it sounds way prettier with the o, even if it's soft/not empasized :)

[juniorfan29.livejournal.com]

Personally, I'm not a fan of gaelic names...I don't like a name that is pronounced drastically different than it is spelled. Declan, however, I like...as long as it is pronounced the way I think it is (DECK-lan).

[neverstarsburn.livejournal.com]

that is indeed how its pronounced, it's probably one of the only ones i'd use.

[how-obscure.livejournal.com]

I like Declan and Kiernan. I kind of like Finn too. I understand why you want to use the other spelling though. I think a lot of Gaelic spellings are really pretty. The "o" in that one just bothers me for some reason. Aoibheann looks really pretty but it would be mispronounced, as you said. I like Catriona, pronounced Katrina, as others have said. I'm not sure how I feel about Liadan. It sounds kind of pretty but it looks more masculine to me.

[neverstarsburn.livejournal.com]

i agree about liadan, i think the masculine seeming spelling for me is because it kind of looks like landon.