I think I'll choose to buy the etymology that says it is influenced by 'damar' meaning wife. The calf meaning doesn't really bother me, at any rate.
Names with these letters are totally my THING. M,R, and D all together! But it's not a magic formula, because
Damaris has that stressed DAM in the front. Not only giving me the vague sensation of condemning something, but also reminding me of the word 'dam' meaning 'mother' when applied to breeding animals.
So ... I think I would choose to pronounce it DAH-ma-rees instead, like in Spanish, with an accent on the first a. If I were going to like it. Why can't it just be da-MAHR-iss? Oh well.
- mirfak