Correct Pronunciation of This Name?

Question

What is the correct pronunciation of the name Ciara? I've always said it and heard it pronounced as Keer-ah, but I had a friend tell me the other day that in America it is said as Sierra, like the singer (who?). I don't see how Ciara could possible sound like Sierra, but I guess I've been wrong before, which one is it? Thanks!

Answer 1

Americans butcher just about everything, including names, haha.



Ciara is said "KEER-ah". It's an Irish name and its pronunciation follows the Irish word guidelines. C has a hard K sound with most (if not all) Irish names / words. Yes, the average English speaker would probably pronounce it wrong, but I think that just means that people need to be more educated on other languages. Irish people aren't going to change the way they spell words just because some uneducated person doesn't know how to say it.



Sierra is pronounced "see-AIR-ah". Nothing like Ciara.



EDIT: Wow, a thumbs-down for giving the CORRECT answer. Nice.

ɛïɜ Tнαℓια'ა ጦυაε

Answer 2

Yep, Americans pronounce it like Sierra. It's rude to say we don't know how to speak, though. If you look at the name, the "sierra" pronunciation makes way more sense. How would you even get keer-uh out of that?



Anyway, no need to be rude. People speak differently. It's life.

Answer 3

The correct pronunciation of this Irish name is Keer-ah. In Irish, C and K are both a K sound when used at the beginning of a word. It is spelled and pronounced this way, why? Because it is another language. Irish, in fact.



Sierra is a spanish name. The names aren't actually interchangeable because they have different meanings.

Answer 4

Yes, you are correct. Keer-ah is the correct pronunciation. It can't actually sound like Sierra phonetically, it's just a trashy Americanization.



The only people that culd possibly say it like that are the Americans, but they don't really speak English.

Answer 5

The original pronunciation is Keer-ah.



And yes it can be pronounced like Sierra also. The letter C = Sie, Ara= erra.....



More to the point, how it can it be pronounced like Keer-ah? To your average English speaker, it makes no sense. And yes, I do know why they pronounce it like that, I'm just pointing out that its a bit strange for your average English speaker to pronounce Ciara as Keer-ah.

Answer 6

Keer-uh is the correct Irish pronunciation. If you want to **** it up a little, then Sierra is the way to go.

Answer 7

I don't see how Ciara could be pronounced Keer-ah. I mean a vowel with a single consonant after it makes a long sound so the "a" must be pronounced long as in cane. So how can it make an E sound?

Answer 8

The girls I know who are named Ciara pronounce it See-Air-Uh, exactly like Sierra.



I prefer it this way. I'm not fond of the Key-Are-Uh or Keer-Uh pronunciations.

Answer 9

In Greek mythology, Antigone (pronunciation: /ænˈtɪɡəniː/ an-ti-gə-nee; Ἀντιγόνη) is the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta, Oedipus' mother. The name has been suggested to mean "opposed to motherhood", "in place of a mother",[1] It may also mean "against men" since men were dominant in the Ancient Greek family structure, and Antigone clearly defied masculine authority, or "anti-generative", from the root gonē, "that which generates" (related: gonos, "-gony"; seed, semen) In view of its Classical Greek meaning I would not be very keen to use the name!!!!

Answer 10

I would pronounce Ciara as Kee-Ahr-Uh, like the name Kiara. I would pronounce Keira as Keer-Uh. :]

Answer 11

Keer-uh is the Irish prononciation but i think it can be pronounced Keer-uh, Kee-air-uh, or See-air-uh

Answer 12

Sierra is the proper pronunciation - although it blows my mind that someone would be so shallow and self-centered as to attach such a tag to an innocent child...

Answer 13

My friends name is spelled like that and is pronounced C-Air-ra