[name_m]Hi[/name_m] everybody.
I really want to use an I name for a girl. However, there’s names that start with I - [name_f]Isidora[/name_f], [name_f]Irina[/name_f], [name_f]Ingrid[/name_f], Iriana, [name_f]Iliana[/name_f] etc. and there’s the much shorter list of I names that start with a hard “eye” sound and I’m looking for any I may have forgotten.
I have:
[name_f]Irisa[/name_f] - bit cute in some ways, but maybe too frilly?
[name_f]Iantha[/name_f] - not sure this even is supposed to start with an “eye” sound, I’ve heard it that way though, also “ee-anth-ee”
[name_f]Iola[/name_f] - very likely to look like [name_f]Lola[/name_f] in many fonts
[name_f]Ivy[/name_f] - Very appealing and accessible, also very popular which I’m neutral on.
[name_f]Iris[/name_f] - Beautiful, but somber. I like the meaning.
[name_f]Isla[/name_f] - I like the sound, but not the meaning or the look of it really. It’s also extremely popular here.
[name_f]Irene[/name_f] - can’t convince DH even as a middle name. The closest related name he liked was Iriana.
Anything I should have thought of and didn’t?
[name_f]Ione[/name_f], [name_f]Ida[/name_f], and [name_f]Ireland[/name_f] are a few I can think of.
oh, [name_f]Ione[/name_f]! I wish I could use [name_f]Ione[/name_f]! (Last name very much like Mahoney… which… it rhymes in a very total way)
I like [name_f]Ida[/name_f], forgot all about it, thanks.
If [name_f]Ione[/name_f] is out, I’m guessing [name_f]Iona[/name_f] is too? Shame!
[name_f]Ina[/name_f] is the only other one I can think of. I’m surprised there aren’t more!
What a shame Ione’s out. Such a lovely name. From your options and comments, it feels like Iris or Ivy might be the best fit for you.
More options:
Io - it’s ‘ee-oh’ traditionally, but generally ‘eye-owe’ in English.
Islay - is this any better than Isla for you? It’s pronounced the same. The etymology’s uncertain.
Iole - might be an alternative to Iola, though it might look like Lole in some fonts. As with Iola, it’s pronounced with an ‘ee-owe’ or ‘yo’ or ‘eye-owe’, depending on who you ask/where you live
Iolanthe - I’ve seen both yo-lan-thuh and eye-owe-lan-thuh as pronunciations.
Ita - nameberry has this pronounced with an ‘ee’ sound, but Ita Buttrose (a well-known public figure here in Australia) pronounces her name “eye-tuh”.
Isa - nameberry doesn’t give a pronunciation, but the origin and long forms it suggests imply it’s pronounced “ee-suh” or “ee-zuh”. There’s also an Australian town named Mount Isa, though, which is pronounced “eye-zuh”. I’ve also always heard ISA Brown chickens referred to as “eye-zuh” browns, though ISA is technically an acronym.
Ivory - might be another option, though it feels a bit further away from your style.
^[name_f]Islay[/name_f] is the name of a Scottish island I believe
[name_f]Ianthe[/name_f] - I’ve seen it pronounced both eye-anth-ee and ee-anth-ee but I prefer the former
[name_f]Iva[/name_f]
[name_f]Irie[/name_f] - it was used in [name_f]Zadie[/name_f] [name_m]Smith[/name_m]'s book White Teeth
[QUOTE=greyblue;4177020]^[name_f]Islay[/name_f] is the name of a Scottish island I believe
Sorry, should’ve been clearer : the etymology of the island’s name is uncertain 
Sorry, should’ve been clearer. I meant that the etymology of the island’s name is uncertain 
The only one that I could think of was [name_f]Idys[/name_f]. [name_f]Eileen[/name_f] starts with a hard i sound.
[name_f]Idun[/name_f] or [name_f]Idony[/name_f] (EYE dun or EYE dun ee) both Norse I believe