How do you pronounce Maya?

For all of my pregnancy I have been very keen on Maya for a girl.. and in my head I have been flicking between May-a, or My-a ?

How do you think it is meant to be pronounced?

I have heard it pronounced both ways. Either is lovely, but I guess it depends on what middle name you have and also your last name as to which version you go with

May-a

when i read Maya - i pronounce it May - a

My initial reaction is May-a but I have heard either and I actually prefer My-a.

I would pronounce it May-a. its lovely no matter which way you wanted to spell it.

Nae x

I prefer May-a.. as My-a makes me think of "Myer" the store.. :)

I was checking out a few other baby name sites, and the consensus seemed to be that it is My-a and that May-a was - too quote "an uneducated" way to pronounce it (??)

hmmm I think you can call and pronounce your baby's chosen name however you wish phooey to those who think that its "uneducated".

If you like it I say go for it regardless

thanks Nae :)

It depends where you come from both are correct. Me personally if I see Maya I say May-a if I see Maja (which is the Polish spelling of the same name) I say My-a.

I you love the name and you have a preference on pronunciation then use it the way you want.

For example my girls are Sara, Loren and bub to be will be Eva. Sara is not Sarah it is Sa-ra (roll the r), Lo -ren (roll the the r) and Eva will be (Ever not EEva).

I love the name Maya

Same as the department store.
I've never heard anyone say May-ah before and I'd probably have a little snigger if I did.

I pronounce it May-a.

It's a gorgeous name either way though :D

I pronounce it May-ah. When I see/hear My-ah I consider it as a completely different name.

May-a

Definitely 'May-a'. When I read the title of your post I instantly thought 'how else could you pronounce it???'. Maybe I'm one of the uneducated ones though :rofl:

BTW, we have a local Indian restauarant called 'Maya Marsalla' and they pronounce it May-a.

I am SO glad you posted this!

I know two of each, two May-as and two My-ahs. I was thinking about it because my friend with a My-ah thinks it's ridiculous to pronounce it any other way. I think it can be misleading, but there's really no other way to spell it that won't also be misleading.

I don't think it's ridiculous to pronounce it May-a. We say May, so it's quite logical to say May-a.
Interestingly, the May-as are up here in QLD, and the others are down south.

i know two Mayas' and both pronounced may-a.
I too can't help but think of the dept store if it were My-a.

I have a little girl, Maya (pronounced May-a) just as you spell it. Either way ie My-a or May-a is lovely. Maya has a long history depending on your nationality thus the different spellings/pronunciations. It has links in many, many cultures. Ignorance reflects on those who don't understand names can be linked into different cultural backgrounds in both expression and spelling. My suggestion would be do some research to see which meanings resonate for you.

I was watching The Simpson's last night and Moe's girlfriend that he met on the net was called Maya and he pronounced it 'My-a'. Sounds nice both ways.

I would pronounce it May - a.
btw I know a 3 girls called Maiya/maia and the connection to Myers store never occured to me till I read this thread. I think May - a or Mai - a are both lovely names.

I've only ever heard My-a, not May-a. It's a lovely name though I prefer what I think is a variation, Marya. A bit tricky to pronounce though! Literally Mar-Ya. It kinda sounds like Maria if you get it wrong.

I would think it would be 'My -a', it has a smoother sound to it. Ma-ya could be a bit...harsh?? :)