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THE PRONUNCIATION OF Irish names and an unintended reference to an infamous hurricane were among concerns raised during the naming of this year’s winter storms.
Correspondence released to TheJournal.ie under the Freedom of Information Act reveals how Met Éireann, the UK Met Office and the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) decided upon storm names for the 2020-21 season.
It is the second year that the three offices have shared responsibility for designating the storms under the ‘Name Our Storms’ scheme, which aims to raise awareness of severe weather before it hits.
The names are used when a wind storm is strong enough for either office to issue an orange or red warning.
An alternating male-female pattern is followed, with names beginning with letters Q, U, X, Y and Z excluded to comply with international conventions.
This year, Aiden, Bella, Christoph, Darcy, Evert, Fleur, Gavin, Heulwen, Iain, Julia, Klaas, Lilah, Minne, Naia, Oscar, Phoebe, Ravi, Saidhbhín, Tobias, Veronica and Wilson were selected and formally unveiled on 1 September.
Severe flooding
A list of names sent from the UK Met Office to Irish and Dutch meteorologists on 24 July shows that 16 other names were initially proposed.
They included the names Albert, Brenda, Charlie, Dionne, Eddie, Felicity, Hasina, Igor, Joanne, Klaus, Lauren, Mark, Odin, Rachid, Stella, Tyler and Viola.
However, in an initial reply on 27 July, Met Éireann’s Head of Forecasting Evelyn Cusack asked for the name Charlie to be dropped.
“My only strong rejection is Charlie,” Cusack wrote. “Ireland cannot have Charlie as we were hit by severe flooding in 1986 from an off-shoot of Hurricane Charley.”
In the same email, Cusack proposed the names Cillian, Oscar and Saidhbhín on behalf of Ireland, noting that Cillian would be the only one used (as the number of storms was unlikely to reach the point at which Oscar would be required).
And although two of those names later made the list, the choice of Cillian was later overruled by the KNMI as meteorologists felt that Dutch people would have issues with it.
“Unfortunately Cillian is almost impossible to pronounce in Dutch (last year Ciara also caused a lot of hassle…),” a forecaster wrote. “Is Cees or Cor still an option for the C?”
Instead, the name Aiden was chosen on behalf of Ireland, with Christoph chosen for the letter C in order to ensure each nation was represented in the first three storms.
St Elmo’s Fire
In another email on 10 August, Cusack also proposed the name Elmo on behalf of the Dutch meteorologists.
“Elmo could be a good Dutch boy’s name meaning ‘noble’ but also of meteorological significance as in ‘St Elmo’s Fire’,” she wrote.
However, this suggestion was also rejected by the KNMI, who wrote: “Unfortunately Elmo isn’t a Dutch name. We only know it as a character in Sesame Street.”
A final list of names was eventually agreed in August, and released to the public in September.
It is the second year in a row in which Irish suggestions have been problematic for forecasters attempting to draft a list of winter storm names.
In 2019, the KNMI dropped a the suggestion of Eimear over concerns about how British people would react to it. Cusack also corrected the UK Met Office on its spelling of the name Róisín, after the forecaster did not include fadas when the name was put forward.
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- “Unfortunately Cillian is almost impossible to pronounce in Dutch”
Then go with Saidhbhín.
@Mick Tobin: I suppose they could have spelt it with a K?
Hi, this is Ciarán speaking. (Working on a desk with a shared line)
Hi, I’m looking for “Sierra-nnn”
This happened to me a lot.
@Ciarán Ó Fallúin: Got that many times in the USA . Yours aka “sirian”
@Ciarán Ó Fallúin: I got called Sharon one time when they saw Ciaran on my name tag in Vancouver!!
Storm in a Tea Cup.
A tea sup or a tea kup?
Aidan is how I spell my name not Aiden so which is correct?
Aidan Twomey
@Aidan Twomey: Aydin.
Why do the Brits have so much trouble with fadas?!
@Shaner Mac: It’s similar as to why they won’t even learn a few basic phrases when on holiday to Spain or Italy. They just expect the “stupid locals” to speak their tongue. I have a feeling that is changing quickly. They think speaking loudly will get them understood.
@Shaner Mac: Most vowel sounds are short in Anglo-English, whereas in Hiberno-English they are long. When English people come across a new word, their attempt usually involves short vowels. An example is our pronunciation of Co. Louth compared to their pronunciation of the town of Louth in Lincolnshire (pronounced to rhyme with mouth).
@LangerDan: What?
@Hans Vos: Kann ich Dir helfen?
@LangerDan: do you make similar racist generalisations about any other nationality or just about our nearest neighbours?
@Sara Davis: Racist? Off on your horse.
@Shaner Mac: They’re fine with the e in café – only 4 vowels to go.
@Shaner Mac: maybe because it means nutcase in French
I don’t see why the Netherlands are involved in naming storms with Ireland and Uk anyway. They can do their own naming surely
@Helen Leahy: it has to do with geography -the weather that hits Ireland and the UK hits there too (I know this because I’m Irish living in the Netherlands the last 6 years). The English can’t pronounce the Irish names either.
@Gemma Aelen: we can’t pronounce many Dutch names either e.g. swimmer Michelle de Bruin. Pronounced like de Brown not de Brune as in prune which is how we constantly said it.
I would love that job. Ar*e , Boll*x , Cr@p , Dangleberry , Eejit , Feckity , Geeface … etc
@Barry Teehan:
It’s a wonder you got away with geeface.
I live in the Netherlands 6 years now and I can tell you the Irish names are as good as impossible for the Dutch to pronounce- they have different pronunciations for letters than in English. Ciara last year was awful, the news and weather reporters hated it, struggled all the time and even had a full discussion on how to pronounce it. I think they should just keep to easy names to pronounce. My husband can say all my family’s names but he said reading them and then trying to pronounce them is impossible. I once met a guy who told me his name was Irish, he said it was “Nee-am” and I had no idea what he was talking about…..turns out after he spelled it it was Niamh
@Gemma Aelen: Ignore that “There was a problem posting your comment” message!
I live in the Netherlands 6 years now and I can tell you the Irish names are as good as impossible for the Dutch to pronounce- they have different pronunciations for letters than in English. Ciara last year was awful, the news and weather reporters hated it, struggled all the time and even had a full discussion on how to pronounce it. I think they should just keep to easy names to pronounce. My husband can say all my family’s names but he said reading them and then trying to pronounce them is impossible. I once met a guy who told me his name was Irish, he said it was “Nee-am” and I had no idea what he was talking about…..turns out after he spelled it it was Niamh
@Gemma Aelen: Ignore that “There was a problem posting your comment” message
Obligatory Lee Mack link: https://youtu.be/OcLOKQOpj7U
I live in the Netherlands 6 years now and I can tell you the Irish names are as good as impossible for the Dutch to pronounce- they have different pronunciations for letters than in English. Ciara last year was awful, the news and weather reporters hated it, struggled all the time and even had a full discussion on how to pronounce it. I think they should just keep to easy names to pronounce. My husband can say all my family’s names but he said reading them and then trying to pronounce them is impossible. I once met a guy who told me his name was Irish, he said it was “Nee-am” and I had no idea what he was talking about…..turns out after he spelled it it was Niamh
@Gemma Aelen: See above!
I live in the Netherlands 6 years now and I can tell you the Irish names are as good as impossible for the Dutch to pronounce- they have different pronunciations for letters than in English. Ciara last year was awful, the news and weather reporters hated it, struggled all the time and even had a full discussion on how to pronounce it. I think they should just keep to easy names to pronounce. My husband can say all my familiys names but he said reading them and then trying to pronounce them is impossible. I once met a guy who told me his name was Irish, he said it was “Nee-am” and I had no idea what he was talking about…..turns out after he spelled it it was Niamh
I live in the Netherlands 6 years now and I can tell you the Irish names are as good as impossible for the Dutch to pronounce- they have different pronunciations for letters than in English. Ciara last year was awful, the news and weather reporters hated it, struggled all the time and even had a full discussion on how to pronounce it. I think they should just keep to easy names to pronounce. My husband can say all my familiys names but he said reading them and then trying to pronounce them is impossible. I once met a guy who told me his name was Irish, he said it was “Nee-am” and I had no idea what he was talking about…..turns out after he spelled it it was Niamh
@Gemma Aelen: Say that again please.
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