Need HELP/opinion with baby name (girl)

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-22-2007
Need HELP/opinion with baby name (girl)
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Sun, 04-22-2007 - 11:05am
So I'm due May 27th & for about the past 4 months we decided to go with the name Amiah only we had troubles figuring out how to spell it so that it wouldn't be hard to pronounce or too confusing. We first tried Amaiah, which I liked but my dad being an English teacher LOL kept saying its going to get mispronounced and its not "phonetically" correct. Everyone and their neighbor has put in two cents about this name. No one has said they don't like it only how the spelling should or shouldn't be. It is pronounced A-MY-A NOT A-ME-A or A-MAY-A..Basically I'm now at an indecisive stage of my pregnancy where my hormones are out of whack and I could cry at anything and last night it all came to a head because my family was teasing and yeah I think they like the name its just oh the spelling...and mocking it and so then out of left field my husband says I kind of like the name Colby. I was going Oh my gosh where is this coming from. Here I'm supposed to be excited and don't get me wrong I'm thrilled about this baby, but why is naming her taking so hard? We have a 9 year old son and we were told that we might have a rough time having another one and we honestly after years of trying were shocked to find out I was pregnant with her, maybe that is why everything has to be SOOO perfect she is like a little miracle baby. I just was curious what other people out there think besides family people in the public that see her name if they could pronounce it spelled Amiah or if anyone has other ideas as to which was would be easiest to pronunciate there are so many variations like Amyah (which looks like Amy to me) or Amaya I didn't know about all the a's. My son's name starts with a C i think that is why my husband was throwing out Colby our last name starts with a C as well. We got home last night and my husband says I was just messing with you I do like the name Amiah - and I keep thinking in the back of my mind if I go with Amiah will I regret it because of the hassle with pronunciation OR if I change it will I wish I would've stuck with Amiah? The middle name is Marie after my husbands deceased mother. Please if anyone can help I'd appreciate it, I want something kind of different rather than popular or common as my son's name is unique. Thank you!!!!!! :)

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iVillage Member
Registered: 09-29-2005
Sun, 04-22-2007 - 12:27pm

Well since Maya and Maia can be pronounced MIE-a, like you want, and Amaya and Amaia happen to be actual, valid names that some -- if not many -- are fairly familiar with, it seems either of those would be your best bet. Trying to create a spelling (that's not always phonetically correct, as your father pointed out) doesn't help elicit the pronunciation you desire, since it just looks made-up and even less familiar, KWIM?


Amaia might suit you best, since it should help avoid the a-MAY-a pronunciation some will assume with Amaya.


You should be aware -- if you aren't already -- that the name means "the end." I don't know all the linguistics here (just going by BTN, which is generally quite reliable), but some would consider that a negative association. I think in your case it could be used to represent the positive end to your journey -- having tried for years to have this second child and finally seeing your dreams come to fruition. Just something to bear in mind.


You may also like:



  • Amara/Amarantha - a less common floral name (could also be considered in honor of Marie, but I'd then use a different mn with it)

  • Amariah - a masculine Biblical name that's nearly a literal combination of Amaia and Marie, so it could also be considered in her honor

  • Amery - traditionally masculine, again, but unusual enough that it works for a girl as well. It's basically the A beginning of Amaia paired with the sound of Marie, so this seems an interesting option for you as well.

  • Amira(h)

  • Amalia/Amalie

  • Amelie

HTH


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iVillage Member
Registered: 01-15-2007
Sun, 04-22-2007 - 12:27pm

It sounds like Amiah is the name you really love best. If I were to see the name written, such as on a class list on the first day of school, or on a resume later in life, I would have to either take a guess between AmEEah and AmEYEah or ask how to pronounce it. The only spelling I saw in your message that I immediately knew to pronounce AmEYEa is Amaiah.

But if Amiah is the name you love best, and you think you may regret not using it, then I'm not sure that this pronunciation issue is the end of the world. I mean, lots of people are named Helena, and since there are two completely valid pronunciations of the name, they go through this all the time. But it's still a great name. I guess my thinking is that if this is really "the name," as far as your heart is concerned, you should use it and just plan to help people with the pronunciation sometimes.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-06-2007
Sun, 04-22-2007 - 1:48pm

I think that if Amiah is the name you love, you will regret not using it. As far as pronunciation, I would probably pronounce Amiah as A-mee-yuh. Spellings that seem to best fit the pronunciation of A-my-uh, at least for me, would be:

Amaya(h), Amya(h)*

*this is A-my-uh most to me. I guess I tend to think of the pronunciation you are looking for with the use of a "y" instead of an "i". Like Mya would be My-uh to me, and Mia would be Mee-uh to me.

HTH!

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-22-2007
Sun, 04-22-2007 - 2:47pm
Originally I had picked Amaiah which I think I like the looks of best, but that is the one I kept hearing people say there are so many A's in it! Which is so frustrating. So then I thought ok I'll take an A out and make it Amiah but I look at it and still see it could be screwed up. Although Jeremiah is spelled like Amiah pretty much. But its hard. I don't mind Amyah but it looks like Amy to me, and I don't want her called Amy UH...so its frustrating. I think Amaia means the end and then there is amaya or something which means night rain. My husband is looking at Colby and Tavia...I don't know. Our son's name is Camis and our last name starts with a C. I just feel so frazzled and rattled at this moment whereas if you'd have asked me a month ago I was pretty firm on Amaiah. Maybe its my hormones and the feeling of getting closer to my due date I want everything with this baby perfect as I'm sure all mothers want. I'm thankful for all the advice I get. :)
iVillage Member
Registered: 02-28-2004
Sun, 04-22-2007 - 3:43pm
I think the clearest is Amaiah. Amiah looks like a-MEE-ah to me. Another popular one is Amyah but to me it looks like "am-yah" or "ahm-yah" (not to mention Amy-ah).
Also, this is really weird, but Amiah is only one letter off from "Amish" and they look sort of the same in many fonts--throughout this thread I've been wanting to misread it as "Amish" at a glance. Not that there's anything wrong with that association per se, but it just seems a little strange.
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iVillage Member
Registered: 06-25-2006
Sun, 04-22-2007 - 3:44pm

I like the Amaya spelling the best and it's the only spelling I've seen IRL. It's the most straightforward to me, and I like it visually better than Amiah. I'd stop talking about it all w/ your family until the baby is born so that you don't have to deal with all the stress.

Good luck!

Liz

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-27-2003
Sun, 04-22-2007 - 3:46pm

The spelling that I think most looks like uh-MY-uh is Amaya, followed by Amiah. Amaiah honestly just throws me off b/c of the -aia-, and I'm not quite sure what to do with it when I first see it.

The name is beautiful, and I think it's a great choice. However, b/c it's not one that's well-known with only a single most common spelling, it will probably be mispronounced and misspelled occasionally. I don't think that's the end of the world. Really. Once people hear the correct pronunciation and see the name, they'll probably be fine. (And again, I think Amaya is the most clear.)

My younger DD is Julianna, and the doctor's office calls her Julia almost every other time that we're in there. People will mess up almost every name at some point, so I wouldn't let that stop you from using it.

Amaya/Amiah is just beautiful.

Stephanie, mom to Megan Joy (nn Meg), Julianna May (nn Annie), and baby boy edd 8/30/07

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-01-2006
Sun, 04-22-2007 - 4:53pm

My neighbor has a daughter named Amaya (spelled this way). I think it is a beautiful name.

KT

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iVillage Member
Registered: 02-12-2006
Sun, 04-22-2007 - 6:31pm

I believe you should spell it the way you love. However, I do know a little girl with that name, and it is spelled Amya. I don't know if that helps or not. Good luck.

Tracy

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Registered: 04-22-2007
Sun, 04-22-2007 - 6:58pm
I was pretty quiet today about things and my husband came to me and was really supportive about everything this afternoon. He said you know what I like the name Amaiah I truly do think its a pretty name the only reason I mentioned other names yesterday he said was because he was sick of everyone in the family putting there 2 cents in when its OUR daughter's name. He said its frustrating because the name no matter how its spelled could be read wrong and not everyone in this world will like the spelling, but whatever we do we need to go with our instincts on it. I really don't want to change her name to something else I've considered her as Amaiah for some time now in that very spelling. I like Amaya but I know 2 Maya's and realistically Amaya could just as easily be mispronounced as A MAY A...The reason I liked Amaiah spelled this way was because I haven't seen it around this area and its more unique. My sister in law said this morning there will be people that will mispronounce or screw it up but her family and friends and the ones she loves that counts will say it right. If she is 30 and a telemarketer calls and says it wrong then they shouldn't be calling in the first place. She always tries to find a silver lining in things. lol I guess after all these weeks of thinking of her as Amaiah Marie its really tough for me to think of her as Amiah Marie or Amaya Marie...I'm just hoping most people will get that Amaiah is pronounced as UH MY UH not UH MAY UH...but I think the bottom line is I'm close to having her, hormonal, indecisive, and family members are putting in their thoughts and of course with it being a "newer" name that they "haven't heard before" they are nervous about it. My dad just thinks things should be simple and not overdone. I'm rambling, and I think I'm just wanting to hear that I'm making the right choice I don't want to get home from the hospital and wonder if I should change the spelling. Thanks........for your time!!!

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