We have a firm list of names for our baby girl due this summer. However, I just came across a name that stopped me in my tracks— [name_f]Selah[/name_f].
I adore the sound (not far off from [name_f]Stella[/name_f] which is one of our current favorites) and the meaning— particularly for a child incubating during this moment in time— seemed perfect. In the Hebrew bible it is a word put at the end of a certain prayer or phrase that means “a pause for reflection”.
Some questions, how would you intuitively pronounce this? Seh-la or see-la, the former is what I’m going for (like [name_f]Stella[/name_f] without the T).
The middle name will be [name_f]Pearl[/name_f].
What are your thoughts on this name? And what do you think of the various spelling options? [name_f]Sela[/name_f], [name_f]Selah[/name_f], Sella or something else…
I would pronounce it Sell-ah (Like [name_f]Stella[/name_f] without the T). [name_f]Selah[/name_f] is a nice name, but I’d expect to get a lot of confusion w [name_f]Stella[/name_f]. Most likely, people with probably often confuse her name with [name_f]Stella[/name_f]. For example I can for see her meeting someone and saying “[name_m]Hi[/name_m] I’m [name_f]Selah[/name_f]” and people will hear [name_f]Stella[/name_f] and calling her that. That being said, I think this is something that will only occur when she is first meeting people and people will easily adjust. It’s just a matter of whether you correcting, and ultimately mostly her correcting people, is outweighed by how much you love the name.
I think it’s beautiful, though I’ve only heard the [name_m]SAY[/name_m]-la and SEE-la pronunciations not, Sella. I would go with either the [name_f]Selah[/name_f] or [name_f]Sela[/name_f] spelling. I think I personally prefer [name_f]Selah[/name_f]. If you use the sella pronunciation, I do think most people would hear [name_f]Stella[/name_f], so she (and you) would have to correct people frequently, but that’s not necessarily a big deal.
I just saw that Pearl is your chosen middle. With the pronunciation that you would use, it sounds like sell a pearl to me. Not sure if that would bother you or not.
Also, I forgot to mention, if you like [name_f]Selah[/name_f] and [name_f]Stella[/name_f] (aside from the popular [name_f]Bella[/name_f]), you may also like [name_f]Celia[/name_f] (like [name_f]Selah[/name_f] it has a beautiful meaning: heavenly), [name_f]Emilia[/name_f], [name_f]Belle[/name_f], [name_f]Mariella[/name_f], [name_f]Arielle[/name_f], [name_f]Ariella[/name_f], [name_u]Eloise[/name_u], [name_f]Hazel[/name_f], [name_f]Serena[/name_f], [name_f]Tallulah[/name_f], [name_f]Lula[/name_f], [name_f]Laurel[/name_f], or [name_f]Elowen[/name_f].
Thanks! I do like [name_f]Celia[/name_f] and also [name_f]Serena[/name_f]
Our list is:
[name_f]Francesca[/name_f] ([name_u]Frankie[/name_u])
[name_f]Sophie[/name_f]
[name_f]Stella[/name_f]
[name_f]Beatrice[/name_f] ([name_f]Trixie[/name_f] or [name_f]Bea[/name_f] or [name_f]Baya[/name_f])
[name_f]Sylvie[/name_f]
[name_f]Fiona[/name_f]
[name_f]Gabriela[/name_f] ([name_u]Gabi[/name_u])
I always get confused about the pronunciation as I’ve heard three different ways of saying it. Instinctively, I say [name_m]Say[/name_m]-luh but i like the seh-luh pn too
It’s interesting, because [name_f]Sela[/name_f] [name_m]Ward[/name_m] pronounces it see-lah.
The sell-ah pronunciation is so intuitive to me that when I read it’s sometimes pronounced say-la or see-la I can’t even visually see how a word spelled [name_f]Selah[/name_f] could be pronounced in either of those Ways. Perhaps partially it is also because I know the pronunciation in Hebrew (from which it originates) is sel-ah…
I absolutely love [name_f]Francesca[/name_f]! That is my favorite name on your list. I think it is so romantic and beautiful yet underused! I also like that it is a very feminine and classic name that still allows for [name_u]Frankie[/name_u] as a spunky nn.
I think [name_f]Sela[/name_f] is pronounced- [name_m]Seel[/name_m]-uh like the actress [name_f]Sela[/name_f] [name_m]Ward[/name_m], which is where I’ve heard the name.
I love [name_f]Selah[/name_f]! However, I’ve always known it only to be pronounced as See-la. I looked it up and clearly I’m wrong because Sella is an equally acceptable pronunciation. I like it. I’ve always liked [name_f]Stella[/name_f] too but it’s gaining in popularity and I could see [name_f]Selah[/name_f] and [name_f]Stella[/name_f] getting confused easily.
I really love [name_f]Francesca[/name_f], [name_f]Beatrice[/name_f], [name_f]Sylvie[/name_f] and [name_f]Fiona[/name_f] from your list. [name_f]Pearl[/name_f] would be a great middle name for any one of them.
