Difficult traditional spelling for Saoirse vs. Anglicized spelling for an easier life

[name_m]Hi[/name_m] world, I know there has been some discussion on Irish names here with traditional spelling before but I specifically would like opinions on this name and especially voices from Americans with the name [name_f]Saoirse[/name_f].

-Has it been a nightmare for you to explain the spelling/pronunciation to all you meet? Or worth it for the rich history of the name? Is a phonetical spelling like “Seersha” really such a travesty?

I absolutely love this name, and I am of Irish decent, but I live in the American [name_u]West[/name_u], my husband and family are part of the hispanic culture here so there will be [name_m]ZERO[/name_m] recognition of this name. Because our daughter will have a hispanic last name, I really wanted to give her some name identity of her mothers people, but I really do not want to burden her with a lifetime of "[name_m]How[/name_m] the ?*&#$! do you say/ spell that name?? " On the other hand I love the sound of this name and I am running out of time!

[name_f]TIA[/name_f]

Hey, I think Sirsha would be much simplier than Seersha.

I wouldn’t to changed spelling, partly due to the reason this name looks much more beautiful traditionally spelled. Besides, part of the charm is gone if you change the spelling.
If [name_f]Saoirse[/name_f] was spelled Sirsha or Seersha traditionally, I doubt it would be as loved as it is…

I think the traditional name is worth it but would you risk your baby hating you forever because she has to spell it and say it all the time.

TBH having an “unusual” name is NOT the worst thing in the world. Yes, I have to correct people or help people pronounce my name but after the first or second time people get it. The phonetic pronunciation of [name_f]Saoirse[/name_f] is not difficult. Spelling it as Seersha or Sirsha completely removes all the beauty from the original name. Personally, I love my name even though most Americans cannot pronounce it correctly the first time.

Similarly, I live in the Southern US and know a girl named [name_f]Siobhan[/name_f]. There was the typical first-day-of-school, “see-OB-an? see-oh-BAN?” but after a simple correction “It’s sha-VAHN” it was really not a big deal.

[name_f]Saoirse[/name_f] is now in the US top 1000, and with [name_f]Saoirse[/name_f] [name_m]Ronan[/name_m] in the spotlight I don’t think this name is as out there as it once was. If Americans can say Tchaikovsky and [name_m]Sean[/name_m], they can say [name_f]Saoirse[/name_f].

I’m not 100% convinced on its usability in the US at the moment. I went to high school with a girl from [name_f]Ireland[/name_f] named [name_f]Caoimhe[/name_f] and her poor name was just butchered. No one could begin to pronounce or spell it. She ended up hating having to deal with her name in [name_u]America[/name_u].

Your comment was really inept. Tchaikovsky is an anglicized version of a Cyrillic original name, so it is translated into a phonetic spelling. Using the anglocized phonetic spelling of an [name_f]Irish[/name_f] name would be the exact same thing :roll_eyes: