I say
Carys = I know it's KAHR-iss, and I hope I'd remember, but would blurt out KAIR-iss if I wasn't thinking
Cerys = KEHR-iss
Charis = KAHR-iss
I'm not in love with any of them. Maybe I need to meet someone named
Carys, to learn to like it, because there's nothing about it I don't like.
Charis seems old-fashioned and more classic, but also borders on dorky or harsh like
Phyllis or
Doris - or even like
Gladys or
Glenys, for that matter. I prefer
Carissa or even
Charissa over
Charis.
Carys is more like
Gwenyth, does not seem old-fashioned to me, and I hadn't even heard of it until maybe 1990.
Cerys seems like a spinoff spelling - sort of like
Gwyneth from
Gwenyth or
Glynis from
Glenys; but since the name is not a familiar English one, I don't easily determine which is the "original," nor do I get a distinctly different impression. But I do sort of feel like, here where I live,
Cerys is artificially spelled in order to Welshify or maybe witchify it, make it seem more unusual and distinctive. Since in English,
Cerys would be said Sair-is. But ... that's not to say I don't like it. It's cute, and for a name pronounced KAIR-,
Cerys is visually nicer than
Carys.
- mirfak