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I have only ever heard it as CLAH-ra (in the UK), never Clarra (as in Clarence or Clarrie). I saw a film once where the name Clara was pronounced CLAIR-a, which I think is how it's said in America. I could still see Clarrie being used as a short form of Clara though as diminutives don't always follow the same pronunciation as the full name.

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Incidentally, I had a feeling this post would cause confusion with the American posters!

Yeah, one person I know swaps between saying it like this and saying it like CLAH-ra. And I think this is also how Pete on Mad Men says it - Clara is his secretary.

I'm not exactly sure what you are getting at as I pronounce Clarence and Marion with an "air" sound at the start. But I have heard three pronunciations, and I'm pretty sure the Klara I teach falls under the pronunciation you are talking about.

lol. It must be generational. That's how I, a 49 year old, pronounce Clara.

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For what it's worth, I associate this "CLA-ruh" pronunciation with New York City / the East Coast. So I've sometimes wondered where I get it from. (I grew up and still live in the Pacific NW, U.S.A.). It could be my mother's Irish brogue. Or it maybe generational, as I said before.

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Sometimes I do use the "CLARE-uh" way. But I would never use the "CLAH-ruh" pronunciation.

In my accent clair-uh and clar-uh are exactly the same.

Now I'm confused. I pronounce the first syllable about Clarence like I would pronounce clair-uh. Plus the first syllable of Marion rhymes with that in my books. So I'm not sure what this third pronunciation is.

No, it's weird. Your neighbour's pron. sounds a bit like the French one, if I'm getting it rignt.

Hmm. In my accent, the first syllable of Marion and Clarence rhymes with the first syllable of CLAIR-uh. There's little to no difference between CLAR-uh and CLAH-ruh for me, either, so I'm not sure what pronunciation you're going for with CLAR-uh.

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Is it a different vowel sound? Maybe like the A in cat or apple?

CLAR-uh sounds exactly the same clair-uh in my accent, so it seems normal to me!

A bit confused by your distinction between Clair-uh and Clar-uh. To me the first syllable of Clara, and the names Claire and Clarence, all sound exactly the same.

That's exactly how I pronounce Clara! The other pronunciations are unnatural for me.

I have heard Clara pronounced like that. My grandmother says it like that, and she's from Cornwall. I also know a Kara who is from the South West of England and she pronounces it 'KARRA' as if the first syllable rhymes with Clarence. I guess it's a common pronunciation in that part of the country.

I've only ever heard CLAH ra, but I don't think I've ever heard it irl in reference to an English person - just Hispanic people and Germans. So maybe!

Never heard it, and I hope my luck holds!

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What I have heard, here in South Africa anyway, is Clarice pronounced like Clarence without the n. CLARiss. And that shortens conveniently to Clarrie.

CLAR-ah is the Swedish pronunciation, so it sounds fine to me.

Do you mean it has a short A sound. Like CLA-ruh rather than CLAA-ruh? In that case I have heard it pronounced like that before, but I can't remember where!

not sure what you're saying? The first syllable in Marion is MAIR, rhyming with the clair-uh pronunciation. Which isn't the common prn but I've heard it. Can't figure out what your third prn is and how it's different.

Clarence/Marion are the same as Clairence and Mairion in my accent and a lot of others, so in my accent that would technically be the standard.

I've heard of CLAR-uh. It's like an uppercrusty accent. clair-uh is the hillbilly way.

That sounds the same as clair-uh to me (I pronounce Clarence and Marion with an "air" sound). I'm trying to think of the difference, maybe there is no difference in my accent. I've heard Clair-uh and Clah-ruh and I like both, probably the "ah" one better.