Help: Sionan
Alan Conroy
We are expecting our first daughter, any day now. Wanting to give
her an Irish name which is unique in our family, we searched high and
low. Finally, in the "Dictionary of Celtic Mythology" by Peter
Berresford Ellis (Oxford University Press), we found a reference to
"Sionan". According to this book, she was the daughter of Lir's son
Lodan. She went to the Well of Knowledge at the source of the
Shannon. The water of the well rose up and chased her westward and
drowned her. The path of the water became the River Shannon, named
after her.
Based on what little I know of Irish pronuciation, it seemed that
this name would be pronounced Shee-Oh-Nan. This is based on what I
could find from "Teach Yourself Irish" by Diarmuid O' Se' and Joseph
Sheils. We both liked the sound of it, and decided on that name. We
thought that was that. However, recently there has grown a family
argument about the proper pronunciation. We will name our child what
we decide to, even if it isn't a "real" name. However, curiosity has
got the best of me, and my brother as well.
What we have discovered is quite confusing and if anyone has an
answer to any of the questions which follow, I would be grateful to
you. First, here is what we found.
The aforementioned book mentions in the preface that, for names, he
took the most common spelling. Most of his bibliography are books
from the early 1900s and late 1800s. However, no one else agrees that
Sionan is an Irish name, traditional or otherwise. My brother has
contacted the heads of departments at a couple of Irish universities
and has been told that Sionan is not an Irish name that they know of.
This includes Marion Gunn (teacher of Irish at
University College in Dublin, Ireland). Kathi Neil at the Department
of Irish Studies at Saint Mary's University replied "I have shown your
e-mail to Dr. Padraig O Siadhail, who is the Chair of the Department
and hails from Ireland and he has never heard of this name before, and
therefore cannot provide you with the 'correct' pronuncuation."
My mother has a friend, Fergus, who is a tour guide in Ireland. He
wrote, "I had been doing a little research into the origin of the name
Sionnen [note the spelling], which was, when I was at school, the
Irish version of Shannon (the river). The pronunciation is quite
simple - Shunnan. The river got its name from a settlement or a
monastic foundation somewhere along it established by an early Irish
saint named Senan. So if your expected grandchild is to be
called Sionnen its name will most likely derive from Saint Senan."
According to Dennis King, who runs an Irish Word of the Day web
page, Sionan is not a name or any other word in Irish. Siana'n means
"whine, wail", and Si'ona'n means "straw garment". He says "the
closest 'real' name is Sionainn, the name of the river called Shannon
in English. The pronunciation of this is roughly SHOO-nihny (OO as in
wood, ny as in canyon)."
A friend of the family had two friends from Ireland staying with her
this summer. She asked them and they said they had never heard of
Sionan, but thought that it would be pronounced Shy-Oh-Nan,
She-Oh-Nan, or possibly Sho-Nan.
Cathal O Haine, the head of the department for Irish studies at
Trinity College, Dublin wrote "With regard to the name Sionan, it
seems that it is a version of the name Seanan which is a male name
(from sean, ancient, old!) Your suggestion for the pronunciation of
the first syllable seems to be the best of the three. The second
syllable, however, is long; so perhaps SHUN-AWN would be a fair
representation."
Ger Killeen, a contact my brother made, says "The closest
approximation would be something like SH-YUH-nan, though SHU-nan is
not bad."
I deeply appreciate all the help these people have provided, but
perhaps you can understand my bemusement. Here are my questions:
1. Given the legend which I mentioned, what is the proper spelling and
pronunciation for the woman's name?
2. Assume Sionan is a valid name. How does one pronounce it?
3. What "rules" exist for anglicising an Irish name? How would your
anglicize Sionan?
4. Why is there so much difference of opinion from so many people -
especially people in Ireland?
5. Is the author of the book I mentioned totally off?
6. Is there anything approaching a final authority for Irish
pronunciation and/or legend?
7. Given all the differences of opinion, I'm tempted to go along with
the educators and authors. However, since even they don't agree, what
criteria should I use for deciding between them?
Thanks in advance for any help!
- Alan Conroy