Leonardo Hotels guide to… most mispronounced Irish names
The 17th of March is the most famous day on the Irish calendar, it’s St. Patrick’s Day and it is celebrated all around the world. There is nowhere better to celebrate though than in Ireland itself, and it seems the tourists agree with us as thousands of people travel to the Emerald Isle for the national day of celebration. To help those visiting Ireland this Paddy’s Day, Leonardo Hotels has published a list of Ireland’s most frequently mispronounced names – an official guide for the visiting tourist and the sometimes baffled (but too embarrassed to ask) local.
Based on feedback from hotel guests and Leonardo Hotel employees who called out the names they believe cause most confusion, the pronunciation guide outlines 20 tongue twisting names in an effort to help tourists brush shoulders with the locals this St. Patrick’s Day and avoid annoying the Caoilfhionns and Tadhgs amongst us!
Here are our top 20 tongue twisting Irish names and how they should be pronounced:
Female Names
Male Names
Niamh
Nee-av not Ni-am
Daithí
Dah-hee not Day-thigh
Caoimhe
Kwee-va not Kay-oy-mee
Tadhg
Tai-g not Tad-hug
Méadhbh
Mave not Meed-huh
Oisín
Osh-een not Oy-sin
Siobhán
Sh–vawn not Cy-ob-han
Feardorcha
Far-dur-uh-ka not Feer-door-cha
Caoimhseach
Kweev-shock not Kay-im-seech
Séamus
Shay-mus not See-mus
Saoirse
Seer-sha not Say-o-err-see
Eoin / Eoghan
Oh-un not Ee-oy-n or Ee-og-han
Caoilfhionn
Kee-lin not Kay-oil-fy-on
Pádraig / Pádraic
Paw-drig or Paw-rick not Pad-ray-g