Help us decide: Era vs. Veda - and americans how do you pronounce “Era”?

Hi namenerds!

My wife and I are expecting our first baby - a girl, due this April - and we've narrowed it down to two finalists. I need your help with something specific.

Veda (VAY-dah) : Sanskrit for "knowledge." Unambiguously Indian, elegant, ages beautifully.

Era : my personal favorite. It's the modern spelling of Sanskrit इरा (Ira), meaning "earth." Also an epithet of Saraswati, goddess of learning — and in the old texts, Ira is the mother of all vegetation. My wife and I are outdoors people (trails over cities, every time), so that meaning gets me.

Here's my actual question, and I need your first instinct: look at the name "Era" and say it out loud right now, before reading further.

Do you say "EH-ruh" (short e) or "EER-uh" (like the English word "era")?

No wrong answers — I just need to know what happens in the wild.

Then, if you're still here:

1. Which name do you honestly prefer — Era or Veda?
2. Desi folks — does Era read as Indian to you, or just like the English word? (My wife's worry, and it's fair)