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In its own environment, it's fine and I don't find the pronunciation much of an issue. I don't speak any Celtic language, but once you know that nasal + aspirate = v, you're good to go. I wouldn't think for a moment of using it, as I have no links at all with Ireland and there are very many English names that I like better.

I like Caoimhe! I think it would definitely work better in Ireland but people would get used to it in another country as it’s not hard to pronounce - you just have to remember it. It’s not that hard when your not likely to have loads of other irish spellings around you that you have to pronounce correctly (like Siobhan, Saoirse, Aoife etc).

I know a little girl with Irish parents who has this name here in Australia. They actually pronounce it as if it started with a Qu: QUEEV-a. I knew how to spell it immediately as I have some understanding of this and other Irish names but everyone else at work struggles with it. They also struggled with the pronunciation when she first started, it was one of those "Guess how this is pronounced?" type of conversations that went around, so no, most people (from my experience) wouldn't know it was KEE-va or QUEEV-a by looking at it. The same went for Niamh when she started at work, no-one would believe me that it was pronounced NEEV.

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As for Caoimhe, I don't like it. I don't like the sound of either KEE-va or QUEEV-a. Caoimhe looks nicer than Keeva but will be harder for people to spell.

I was watching an Irish name vlogger on YouTube and she said (at least around where she lives in her region in Ireland) that most people actually pronounce it Kwee-va.

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I like the name, both pronunciations. I think it’s pretty. It’s kind of regal / upper class sounding to me.

This message was edited 8/7/2020, 5:34 PM

I like it. No, I don’t think most people (in the US, at least) would know how to pronounce it, and I think even once someone got used to it, they still would take a while to learn how to spell it. Teachers and other kids might struggle with it honestly.

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But I’ve known Siobhan’s who have gotten by just fine, and Saoirse is more well known now. I think similarly a Caoimhe would be just fine.

I like it, depends where you are, most people wouldnt get the spelling or pronounciation

Cool. I never heard it before.

I think outside of Ireland, most people wouldn’t know how to pronounce it if they saw it written down. Also, in some parts of Ireland it’s pronounced KWEE-va, so there’s that pronunciation issue as well.

Unlike Siobhan and Sinead, which are more commonly used outside of Ireland, Caoimhe isn't really common. You could use it, but she would have to explain it to 99% of people.

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I don't love the sound, but it isn't horrible. But I don't love Eva or Evie either, and they're well loved sounds at the moment.