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[Opinions] Airathea
A friend of mine just had a beautiful daughter this morning. She isn't named yet. They really like the name Airathea (air uh thee uh) but they aren't sure if they want to use it because they are afraid people will misspell it and mispronounce it. But they love it. So what do you think? Airathea Elizabeth (two syllable last name).Thanks :)
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Sounds very pretty.
Looks just okay. I don't really like the spelling. The word "air" is too prominent in Airathea, to me.I think it would be more intuitive, more honest seeming (I think invented or derived names look more dignified if they just go ahead and be deviant, and don't look too deliberately phonetic) if it were spelled Erathea, or maybe Eirathea. Even Erathia.
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I'm there with you on the spelling not being very appealing. The "air" part is too prominent. I tend to like ethereal names, but this one is too "head in the clouds" even for me. The phrase "airhead" comes to mind when I see Airathea unfortunately. I prefer Arathea, Erathea, and Erathia for that reason. Arathea looks beautiful and far less contrived than Airathea.
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Or maybe Arathea, although the "Ar" beginning is not pronounced "air" in my accent (the A is more like the one in "apple"). That may not work for some people, but that's how I'd spell it.
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We talked about that too. We even threw around the idea of Heirathea. That looks almost Greek, although Greek people would disagree... It was very hard for them to decide how they wanted to spell it. I even likes Aerathea with Aerie as a nn. But I think that was too close to Aeries for the dh. I agree that it sounds pretty. And if she doesn't like it when she grows up for some reason, she has Elizabeth to fall back on.All in all, a great way to be creative. Usually kr8tiv=tacky.Thank you.
*It should be said that even though the parents are awesome, we don't know eachother very well so aren't super close. But I'm a huge name nerd so I nosed my way in, ugh! How rude. I'm sure you all understand that though.

This message was edited 2/27/2012, 9:14 PM

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Full disclosureI like it. I don't know why, it's not my usual style. I feel like it's kind of old school Victorian era. I know it may not be a Victorian era type name but it still gives me that impression.
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Hmmm. It looks a little contrived, but I actually like it. It's a little ethereal and I like the components (Aira, thea) and think they mesh well. Elizabeth is a good middle name for it because it's manageable and grounded but still has an ethereal feeling to it in the right combos. Airie, Aira, or Thea could be nicknames (easier to spell, etc). If they love it, use it! I don't think I would, but I'd like to see it IRL.
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ThanksWell I guess it is contrived in that the dh mispronounced Aretha from a name book and they liked the sound. But I agree, good roots. They want to call her Airy, although I like your Airie way too.

This message was edited 2/27/2012, 8:56 PM

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