Is she Scandinavian? In that case, I believe it is the equivalent of our Ellie – a short form of names that start with El. But it is pronounced differently, with a long e sound. The Swedish film Let the Right One In featured a tweenaged vampire called Eli. When it was remade in the US, the vampire’s name became Abby.
I know a little Eily here in Norway! Eili is the most common form, my grandmothers nanny was called Eili and it’s considered a Finnish short form of Helen. A lot of Finnish names have been rather well used in Norway.
The Eily I know is Eily Dorthe@ which is one of the most gorgeously named Norwegian children I’ve come across in a long time. ^^
I am just crazy about Eily, both as a name and a nn for other favorites – Eileen / Ilene, Isla / Eila and Ilo. But, I could never find a history or origin until now. Thanks for a great profile!
There’s enough evidence to show that as an Irish name Eily arose simply as a short form of Eileen. What other bearers since might be, of course, there is a world of possibilities, and I think it’s plausible that some non-Irish Eilys might represent a phonetic spelling of the Scottish Eilidh, pet-form of Alice, Isla, etc. I love the thought of Eileithyia getting used! There’s also our Welsh Eilir, which means ‘butterfly’, Eilunwedd (an older form of Eluned), and Eilwen, or, returning to Ireland, the Irish Eil
It’s cute, but seems insubstantial to me as a full name. I can very much see the appeal of it, and if Eily is ever to have a day, that day may have come.
When we were seriously considering Isla, I found the name Eila and wanted to use it instead. I liked that it was hebrew and would be easier to pronounce than Isla (although still just as hard for people to spell, I’m sure). Anyway, I thought Eily would be a cute nickname for an Eila, but I’m not sure that I would use it on it’s own.
I’m not a fan of Miley/Riley names, but I do like Eily as a short form of names like Eileen or even Elizabeth. My mom’s best friend was an Eileen, and we lovingly referred to her as “aunt”. She passed away a few years ago. I could see using Eily in the middle spot to honor her.
There’s an elderly lady in my church whose given name is Alice, but she’s been called Ailee all of her life. Eily is cute, but I’d prefer it as a nickname for a Eileen (which is lovely.)
Overall, I’m not a big fan of names in the realm of Kylie, Miiey, Riley — mostly because there isn’t any agreement on how the names should be spelled.
One of my friends from church has a toddler named Eileen, and we all call her Eily, although in my head I always spelled it Eile. I didn’t realize that Eily was a legitimate name, we just thought it was a cute nickname! Eily is cute, but I don’t know if it would work for a grown woman. At least my Eily has a real name to fall back on. (BTW, Eileen was named after her great-grandmother.)
Thanks so much for profiling Eily! I knew a girl in elementary school called Eily (she was Jewish – don’t know if she had any Irish heritage) and I always kept the name in the back of my mind. I loved its look and sound. Fast-forward to 2001 … my husband and I seriously considered Eily (in fact it was one of two girl’s names we took to the hospital with us; only one boy’s name made the cut). My concern at the time was that it would be mistaken for Eileen, a name I dislike as much as I like Eily. That, along with many other reasons, led us to choose Astrid for our daughter. Now with the glut of -iley names I’m doubly glad we chose something else, but I still have a soft spot in my heart for it. Maybe it can be my great-grandaughter’s name!
I know a girl with the middle name Eli (prn. ee-lee). Any relation? She told me about it’s history once, so I know it’s not made up.
Is she Scandinavian? In that case, I believe it is the equivalent of our Ellie – a short form of names that start with El. But it is pronounced differently, with a long e sound. The Swedish film Let the Right One In featured a tweenaged vampire called Eli. When it was remade in the US, the vampire’s name became Abby.
I heard this name on the radio (a caller) and wondered how it might be spelled. Brilliant!
I know a little Eily here in Norway! Eili is the most common form, my grandmothers nanny was called Eili and it’s considered a Finnish short form of Helen. A lot of Finnish names have been rather well used in Norway.
The Eily I know is Eily Dorthe@ which is one of the most gorgeously named Norwegian children I’ve come across in a long time. ^^
I am just crazy about Eily, both as a name and a nn for other favorites – Eileen / Ilene, Isla / Eila and Ilo. But, I could never find a history or origin until now. Thanks for a great profile!
There’s enough evidence to show that as an Irish name Eily arose simply as a short form of Eileen. What other bearers since might be, of course, there is a world of possibilities, and I think it’s plausible that some non-Irish Eilys might represent a phonetic spelling of the Scottish Eilidh, pet-form of Alice, Isla, etc. I love the thought of Eileithyia getting used! There’s also our Welsh Eilir, which means ‘butterfly’, Eilunwedd (an older form of Eluned), and Eilwen, or, returning to Ireland, the Irish Eil
It’s cute, but seems insubstantial to me as a full name. I can very much see the appeal of it, and if Eily is ever to have a day, that day may have come.
When we were seriously considering Isla, I found the name Eila and wanted to use it instead. I liked that it was hebrew and would be easier to pronounce than Isla (although still just as hard for people to spell, I’m sure). Anyway, I thought Eily would be a cute nickname for an Eila, but I’m not sure that I would use it on it’s own.
I’m not a fan of Miley/Riley names, but I do like Eily as a short form of names like Eileen or even Elizabeth. My mom’s best friend was an Eileen, and we lovingly referred to her as “aunt”. She passed away a few years ago. I could see using Eily in the middle spot to honor her.
There’s an elderly lady in my church whose given name is Alice, but she’s been called Ailee all of her life. Eily is cute, but I’d prefer it as a nickname for a Eileen (which is lovely.)
Overall, I’m not a big fan of names in the realm of Kylie, Miiey, Riley — mostly because there isn’t any agreement on how the names should be spelled.
One of my friends from church has a toddler named Eileen, and we all call her Eily, although in my head I always spelled it Eile. I didn’t realize that Eily was a legitimate name, we just thought it was a cute nickname! Eily is cute, but I don’t know if it would work for a grown woman. At least my Eily has a real name to fall back on. (BTW, Eileen was named after her great-grandmother.)
Related to Eilidh? http://www.behindthename.com/name/eilidh
Possibly … which, by another circuitous route, takes us back to Helen again … though I’m not sure how to pronounce Eilidh. Anyone?
Eilidh is generally AY-lee, although some regional Irish dialects sound more like EL-ee
Similarly,
Eilidh’s a Scottish Gaelic name though, not an Irish one.
Yes, your right. I was thinking of my Irish friend Eilidh (EL-ee) 😉
Thanks so much for profiling Eily! I knew a girl in elementary school called Eily (she was Jewish – don’t know if she had any Irish heritage) and I always kept the name in the back of my mind. I loved its look and sound. Fast-forward to 2001 … my husband and I seriously considered Eily (in fact it was one of two girl’s names we took to the hospital with us; only one boy’s name made the cut). My concern at the time was that it would be mistaken for Eileen, a name I dislike as much as I like Eily. That, along with many other reasons, led us to choose Astrid for our daughter. Now with the glut of -iley names I’m doubly glad we chose something else, but I still have a soft spot in my heart for it. Maybe it can be my great-grandaughter’s name!
Perhaps her name was a variation of the Hebrew name Eilah/Eila/Elah meaning “oak tree”?