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Help[Opinions] Maureen
I'm completely unable to get this name out of my head. I really, really love it. Obviously it's too close to my daughter's name (Miriam) but I'm curious what others think.
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Maureen O'Hara
Swoon. I was soo into Maureen O'Hara as a kid. She is simply gorgeous and her characters were always so feisty. For that reason, I have long loved the name Maureen.
I actually considered using it, simply because it is one of those old fashioned gems that might be dusty but will always be classy (like Kathleen). People recognize it and tend to like it. Plus Maura is a decent nn to make it a little more modern.
My sister's MIL has this name, so it's on our "do not use" list.
Swoon. I was soo into Maureen O'Hara as a kid. She is simply gorgeous and her characters were always so feisty. For that reason, I have long loved the name Maureen.
I actually considered using it, simply because it is one of those old fashioned gems that might be dusty but will always be classy (like Kathleen). People recognize it and tend to like it. Plus Maura is a decent nn to make it a little more modern.
My sister's MIL has this name, so it's on our "do not use" list.
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I really love her.
She is awesome and soooo beautiful.
She is awesome and soooo beautiful.
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It's not my thing. I normally don't mind dated names that much, but the sound of it is a real downer: MORE-REEN. Ugh.
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I do see what you and Rox are talking about. But I like the darkness, the sad feeling. It's very noir to me.
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Dark name-there's a character in the book"The Harp in the South"-perhaps you know it, called Dolour. That's a sad name, for sure!
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I like it. I don't like how it looks, but the sound of it is striking.
I don't think it's too close to Miriam.
I don't think it's too close to Miriam.
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I'm not wild about 'een' names in general and they seem a tad dated to me. I prefer Maura which has a more lilting quality to it.
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It's super-dated here and only happens on people over 70. The only living Maureen I know is an American friend of a friend who I see periodically - for years I thought her name was Marine, and was very surprised when I saw it written down as here we pronounce it MORE een. I think I could like it with the US pronunciation, but I can't see it coming back here for a long time, if ever.
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It is definitely pronounced MORE-een in the US, also. If your American acquaintance pronounced it Marine, that was an aberration. (Now I half expect half a dozen Americans to tell me that they or someone they know or in their area it's pronounced Marine, but I have never ever heard that pronunciation.)
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Maybe she just has an odd accent! - not sure where in the US she's from. But it definitely sounded like mə REEN to me (which is how I'd say marine), emphasis on the second syllable, not the first.
http://forvo.com/word/maureen/#en
The third pronunciation down is closest to it. The fourth is closest to what I'm used to hearing as Maureen.
http://forvo.com/word/maureen/#en
The third pronunciation down is closest to it. The fourth is closest to what I'm used to hearing as Maureen.
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It could be an accent. Like, 'Merica!
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Here in the Pacific Northwest it's definitely "mor-EEN." (I'd use an upside down "e" but I don't know how.)
My niece has apparently inspired other little Maureens in her town. Three have been enrolled at a nearby school since she went through in the 1990s. Her mother (my SIL) is a teacher so she's up on these things.
Anyway. This is a long winded way of saying that here in Seattle / Spokane, it's pronounced with the stress on the second syllable. I prefer it on the first. But there it is.
My niece has apparently inspired other little Maureens in her town. Three have been enrolled at a nearby school since she went through in the 1990s. Her mother (my SIL) is a teacher so she's up on these things.
Anyway. This is a long winded way of saying that here in Seattle / Spokane, it's pronounced with the stress on the second syllable. I prefer it on the first. But there it is.
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Agree
It's definitely pronounced more-EEN here. I've never heard it said any other way.
It's definitely pronounced more-EEN here. I've never heard it said any other way.
This message was edited 4/29/2015, 3:38 AM
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I've heard MORE-een and MOIR-een but never MAHR-een for Maureen while here in the US. Maybe your friend is the type of person who is named Bucket but pronounces it Bouquet a la Keeping Up Appearances?
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It's my niece's name (Maureen Elizabeth). She's 26 and goes by Mo. Biased I am, but still count me in the "love it" column. My SIL had a thing for Maureen O'Hara, which totally worked out for my niece. I'm the annoying aunt that calls her by her full name because I'm still tickled pink they chose it. :0)
Here in the U.S. the stress is on the second syllable. But I love it even more when My mother says it with an Irish brogue. The stress is on the first syllable and the tongue is allowed to make the most out of the "r" in the middle.
Maureen Glynis is my stock combo for it.
Here in the U.S. the stress is on the second syllable. But I love it even more when My mother says it with an Irish brogue. The stress is on the first syllable and the tongue is allowed to make the most out of the "r" in the middle.
Maureen Glynis is my stock combo for it.
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I also really like Maureen. There's just something about it. It seems sort of glamorous.
Are Miriam and Maureen too close? IDK. Maybe. Maybe not, though. You could at least user it for a middle if you don't want to use it as a first. Helen Maureen. Judith Maureen. Margaret Maureen (I like the double M!)
Are Miriam and Maureen too close? IDK. Maybe. Maybe not, though. You could at least user it for a middle if you don't want to use it as a first. Helen Maureen. Judith Maureen. Margaret Maureen (I like the double M!)
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I love it! I have since I was a kid. I've considered wanting to put it in the "would use list," but I think it's too close to Margaret. Same issue. :)
I think it's a very sweet name, but it's both sophisticated and upbeat too. And has quirky nickname options! I've known Maureens who've gone by Mo or Marty. I like Mo.
I think it's a very sweet name, but it's both sophisticated and upbeat too. And has quirky nickname options! I've known Maureens who've gone by Mo or Marty. I like Mo.
This message was edited 4/28/2015, 4:33 AM
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It's alright, but feels a bit dowdy and dated.
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It's my grandmother's name as well as my sister's middle name, so I've always had a bit of a soft spot for it.
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My older sister makes fun of this name. That's because when she was very young, say 12 or 13, it was her "favorite name" and she would say at that age that when she had a girl her name was going to be Maureen. This changed and when she had a daughter years later her name was Heather, not Maureen. So Maureen has become to my sister the "stupid name you like when you're 12 but you later thankfully grow out of." She always says it "Maur--EEEEN", emphasizing the last syllable because she thinks the last syllable is so stupid. (She does the same thing with her own middle name, Eileen. Which she thinks is horrible.)
It kinds of grates on me, to be honest. Kind of agree with my sister, to be honest.
It kinds of grates on me, to be honest. Kind of agree with my sister, to be honest.
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Something about this name just doesn't jive with me. I like Maura and I like Colleen, so I should like Maureen, right? Ah, but not so...I guess I just don't like those two sounds together. All I see is a tight-panted, frazzled red-headed, over-make-upped woman pinching a little girl's cheeks so hard the poor child is holding back tears. The woman's face is unsettlingly close to the girl's as she nasally croons, "Maur-eeeeeeeeenn...! Maur-eeeeeeeeenn...!"
Ho-hum. I think it's worth mentioning that, in this mental image, it's the little girl who bears the name Maureen, not the creeper woman. But the woman is completely obscuring the girl's face and she won't let go. She's like a leech, stuck on Maureen. Perhaps forever, unless someone comes along and pries her off with a crowbar.
Ho-hum. I think it's worth mentioning that, in this mental image, it's the little girl who bears the name Maureen, not the creeper woman. But the woman is completely obscuring the girl's face and she won't let go. She's like a leech, stuck on Maureen. Perhaps forever, unless someone comes along and pries her off with a crowbar.
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I'm not much of a fan. It just sounds cranky and humorless to me, and not a way that I like.
I enjoy Maura, though. It's pleasant and simple.
I enjoy Maura, though. It's pleasant and simple.
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It's kind of minimally attractive, but also fairly glum-sounding. Like your mouth has to turn down when you say it. Like it better for a middle name, I guess.
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I really, really like Maureen. I like that it's kinda dark and dusty. It also reminds me of the beautiful Maureen O'Hara.
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