DH and I have fallen in love with Chiara [kee-AH-ruh] for our rainbow baby. Unfortunately, we are having a dilemma over the spelling.
My husband insists we spell it Kiara . He’s concerned that everyone will pronounce it wrong here in the US. I agree that it probably will need to be corrected sometimes, but with names like Chloe, and Chris, and words like Christmas, I feel that Americans can easily catch on to “ch” making a hard “k” sound. I don’t see a simple correction as a big deal, yet he insists on Kiara.
I adore the authentic Italian spelling, Chiara. This spelling is so rich in character, and beauty imo. I have synesthesia and when I see this name, I literally see it as clear like a diamond with bright light blue and silver shining around it. It’s just so beautiful. I’m also part Italian, so I adore the Italian language, history and culture. Yes, correcting it will happen, but keeping the integrity of the authentic spelling is so worth it to me.
Kiara is just as beautiful audibly, but visually my synesthesia sees it as a different name. Kiara is warm tones - gold and bronze, which is pretty, but I don’t love it nearly as much. If only my hubby could see how visually stunning Chiara is in my mind. Yet he says he thinks Chiara looks like a chia pet .
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Should I just bend and let him have Kiara? At least it still sounds beautiful.
I actually have a friend who is Kiara, and my mom thought her name was spelt Chiara. It goes both ways. The Chiara spelling seems to be more meaningful to you so I would keep the spelling.
I totally understand! I have this type of synaesthesia too and Chiara and Kiara look totally different to me, too. What is your husband’s reaction when you explain your synaesthetic preference for Chiara? This aside for a moment, the fact that you are part Italian and wish to have the Italian spelling for your daughter, makes a very strong case for that spelling to be used in itself, IMHO!
I don’t think so!
Of course, no-one can see into the future and know what a child’s experience of their name will be like, but if you & your husband gave it your best shot at imagining your Chiara or Kiara as a little person at school, in her teenage years and beyond, does that give you any insight into how best to name her? If I imagine wearing a name myself, it’s sometimes surprising how I take on a different perspective towards it.
I hope some of these ramblings will be helpful!
I think you should keep trying to convince him to use [name_f]Chiara[/name_f]. [name_f]Kiara[/name_f] is the variation, while [name_f]Chiara[/name_f] is the original spelling. I do still understand why he thinks people will misspell/mispronounce it, but like you said I think it will be a simple correction.
[name_f]Chiara[/name_f] is a beautiful name, and speaking as a US citizen with an Italian name, it’s easy to catch on! I’ve met people named [name_f]Giulia[/name_f], [name_f]Giuliana[/name_f], and [name_f]Chiara[/name_f] who have had their name said correctly many times. Of course, almost every name is bound to be mispronounced. I’ve seen even basic names like [name_f]Leah[/name_f] and [name_f]Anna[/name_f] get [name_f]Leia[/name_f] and [name_f]Ann[/name_f], among others. I myself, a [name_f]Giada[/name_f], have gotten JEE-ah-dah but also JAH-dah more times than I could count. People, now especially in today’s culture, are very adaptive to names and rarely bat an eye at any spelling. As an Italian, I agree [name_f]Chiara[/name_f] is so beautiful and would love to see it used on a baby. Keeping authentic spellings is very important to the baby’s culture… and I think [name_f]Chiara[/name_f] is 100% more beautiful. [name_f]Kiara[/name_f] reminds me of [name_m]Simba[/name_m] and Nala’s daughter in the [name_m]Lion[/name_m] [name_m]King[/name_m], which is beautiful but makes me think more of the Pride Lands. The name gives me the same imagery it gives you, as does [name_f]Chiara[/name_f]. I would keep fighting for [name_f]Chiara[/name_f], maybe give him a read up on Italian names or even synesthesia! Best of luck!
Ooh I also have synaesthesia and I agree, they are so different. My colour imagery is different to yours but I agree that Chiara feels lighter and airier, delicate and bright, whereas Kiara is sharper and darker. Chiara feels princessy and rarefied whereas Kiara feels much more contemporary (K-names almost always make me think ‘Kardashian’!)
I can’t speak to American pronunciation but as you say, Chris and Chloe are two very prominent examples of the hard Ch- being used and accepted, so I’m not sure your husband has much of a leg to stand on
Strongly agree with this!! Kiara just does not say Italian to me at all.
…probably because of this association If I met a Kiara this would be my first thought.
I’m American and would assume this named was spelt [name_f]Ciara[/name_f]! I didn’t usually assume K for names I’ve not heard before. I much prefer the traditional [name_f]Chiara[/name_f] to the Americanized K spelling! Perhaps [name_f]Ciara[/name_f] would be a nice middle ground? Hard “kuh” sound more obvious than with Ch, but not quite as different a look as K?
I prefer [name_f]Chiara[/name_f] but would pronounce it KYAH-ruh if going for authenticity. I don’t think people would have a problem spelling it, and you’d likely have to spell it out anyway as there are several ways it could be spelled and none seems popular enough to be intuitive for people.
It’s really challenging to have a disagreement like this about a name. I know because my husband and I debated the spelling of our oldest daughter’s name in a similar way. I loved the name [name_f]Sophie[/name_f] and he didn’t, but he said that spelling it [name_f]Sofie[/name_f] completely changed the feeling of the name for him. He was ok with using [name_f]Sofie[/name_f] but not [name_f]Sophie[/name_f]. The problem was that it also changed the feeling of the name for me and it wasn’t a positive difference. I don’t see names as colours and shapes, but they evoke strong feelings in me way beyond just like or dislike. I tried hard to convince him that it was better to use the more common spelling (here in [name_f]Canada[/name_f], at least), but he wouldn’t budge. Eventually, I decided to compromise because we were using my preferred name and his preferred spelling.
Honestly, it REALLY bothered me for a long time and I cringed every time I saw it written down. I’d feel silly sharing that with most people, but I think people on this forum understand how strongly some of us can feel about names and their spelling. I did get used to it and even like it now. [name_f]Sofie[/name_f] is 15 now and she likes having a less common spelling of a relatively common name. She’s never met another [name_f]Sofie[/name_f]. She does get annoyed at having her name spelled wrong all the time though. Sometimes her teachers would call her “Sofie with an f” to differentiate her from a [name_f]Sophie[/name_f] in the class in elementary school. And then she had an annoying teacher in middle school who called her “Sofie spelled wrong” all the time, which we thought was really rude and inappropriate. [name_f]Sofie[/name_f] is the more common spelling in northern and eastern Europe. It’s certainly not “wrong” and anyway, making fun of a kid’s name is never something a teacher should do.
I’m not sure what to suggest re. [name_f]Chiara[/name_f] vs [name_f]Kiara[/name_f]. I compromised on spelling and it worked out in the end, though I really struggled with it. I feel for you because I understand how important this must feel. At the same time, maybe your husband also has a strong feeling about [name_f]Kiara[/name_f] being the right name. There’s no right or wrong, just preferences and feelings. It will probably come down to which one of you feels the most deeply about it and how willing you are to compromise. It’s funny because in my mind [name_f]Chiara[/name_f] has a softer, warmer feeling and [name_f]Kiara[/name_f] is sharper and colder. They’re both very pretty.
Also, there’s no question that people can get used to a spelling that isn’t what they would expect based on the phonetic spellings of their language. I knew a family of sisters who have [name_u]Irish[/name_u] parents and their names were [name_f]Ciara[/name_f], [name_f]Aoife[/name_f], [name_f]Niamh[/name_f], and [name_f]Siobahn[/name_f]. They’re all common names in [name_u]Ireland[/name_u], but rarely heard in [name_f]Canada[/name_f]. [name_f]Ciara[/name_f] is pronounced Kee-ra so people would assume it was spelled [name_f]Keira[/name_f] or [name_f]Kira[/name_f], and they’d mispronounce it as Kee-ah-ra if they saw it written. But she’d correct them and they’d get used to it.
[name_f]Chiara[/name_f] is beautiful and [name_f]Kiara[/name_f] is lovely too. I’d recommend playing about with both - maybe create some moodboards or try writing it out, see which one grows on you. Maybe chat to the people around you, ask how they’d pronounce [name_f]Chiara[/name_f], how they’d spell it on hearing the name - it might help sway you one way or another
I really don’t have any advice on how to convince stubborn husbands of things (I have one! ), but Chiara is so much better! She’s totally crystal-y and light blue. Kiara is sort of golden to me, but also sometimes red. Color associations aside, ‘K’ names are just generally trendier looking than ‘C’ names. Look at the Kardashians for instance. Khloe and Kourtney (those are their names, right?) would look so much less obnoxious if they were Chloe & Courtney. Could you compromise on Ciara? That’s the Irish spelling, which I think is equally as beautiful as Chiara. And interestingly more of a dark blue than Chiara in my head. But feels more authentic than Kiara regardless. Maybe show your husband behindthename.com. It has Kiara listed as a variant of Chiara and Ciara, which are the actual correct spellings.
Another thing, my sister in law gave her six kids all ‘difficultly’ spelled Irish names in the Midwest U.S. Her and her husband are into their Irish heritage. She said that at doctor’s offices and activities, people will say their names wrong the first try a lot of the time. But they figure it out eventually, and it’s totally worth it to have meaningful authentic names.
I love the [name_f]Chiara[/name_f] spelling. Your reasoning for the Italian spelling is lovely!! I love the fact that you want to hold on to your heritage.
. He’s concerned that everyone will pronounce it wrong here in the US. I agree that it probably will need to be corrected sometimes, but with names like Chloe, and Chris, and words like Christmas, I feel that Americans can easily catch on to “ch” making a hard “k” sound. I don’t see a simple correction as a big deal, yet he insists on Kiara.
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If I met a Kiara this would be my first thought.
), but Chiara is so much better! She’s totally crystal-y and light blue. Kiara is sort of golden to me, but also sometimes red. Color associations aside, ‘K’ names are just generally trendier looking than ‘C’ names. Look at the Kardashians for instance. Khloe and Kourtney (those are their names, right?) would look so much less obnoxious if they were Chloe & Courtney. Could you compromise on Ciara? That’s the Irish spelling, which I think is equally as beautiful as Chiara. And interestingly more of a dark blue than Chiara in my head. But feels more authentic than Kiara regardless. Maybe show your husband 
