There’s meant to be a fada over the a (á), so it’s definitely meant to be a longer vowel sound.

Take the name Sean for example. Spelled like that it’s actually pronounced shan, and means old. The name that we all pronounce as Shawn is actually spelled Seán

Shuh-vawn

Welcome to the world of Irish names!

We got:

• Dearbhla (Derv-la, f)
• caoilfhionn (kee-lin, f)
• Meadhbh (Maeve, f)
• Saoirse (seer-shuh, f)
• Seoirse (shor-shuh, m)
• Caoimhín (kee-veen, m)
• Sadhbh (sive, f)

And many more!