Irish
names are used on the island of Ireland as well as elsewhere in the Western World as a result of the Irish diaspora. See also
about Irish names.
Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
Kinsella IrishFrom Gaelic
Uí Ceinnsealaigh meaning "descendant of Cinnsealach", a given name probably meaning "chief warrior".
Kirwan IrishFrom Gaelic
Ó Ciardhubháin meaning "descendant of
Ciardhubhán", a given name composed of the elements
ciar "dark" and
dubh "black" combined with a diminutive suffix.
Knowles IrishAs an Irish surname it is an anglicized form of Gaelic
Ó Tnúthghail meaning "descendant of Tnúthgal", a given name composed of the elements
tnúth "desire, envy" and
gal "valor".
Kyne IrishFrom Gaelic
Ó Cadháin meaning "descendant of Cadhán", a byname meaning "barnacle goose".
Lackey IrishLackey was originally a name for a horse servant.
Laffey IrishReduced anglicisation of Gaelic
Ó Laithimh, itself derived from the earlier form
Ó Flaithimh, ultimately from
flaitheamh meaning "ruler". It could also be a variant of
Leahy.
Lahey IrishLahey and Leahy originate from two different Gaelic surnames. Lahey, Lahy, Lahiff, Lahiffe, Laffey, and Lahive all originate from the Gaelic surname O Laithimh, which itself is a variant of O Flaithimh... [
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Lahiffe Irish (Rare)From Irish
Ó Laochdha meaning "descendant of the hero" or "descendant of the heroic", ultimately from
laoch "warrior, hero".
Lally IrishA shortened form of Mullally, an anglicised form of Ó Maolalaidh. A famous bearer includes James Lally, an Irish landowner and politician from Tuam, County Galway.
Lalor IrishLalor is an Irish surname derived from the Irish Ó Leathlobhair, from leath- “leper; weak, ailing person”
Lanigan IrishAnglicized form of Gaelic Ó Lonagáin 'descendant of Lonagán
Larkin IrishReduced Anglicized form of Gaelic
Ó Lorcáin meaning "descendant of
Lorcán".
Lavery Irish, Northern IrishFrom the Gaelic
Ó Labhradha, "descendants of Labhradha" (
speaker, spokesman, the father of Etru, chief of the Monagh of the Irish over-kingdom of Ulaid); the name of an ancient family originating from Magh Rath (present-day Moira, County Down, Northern Ireland)... [
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Lawler Irish, ScottishThis Irish surname is of Gaelic language origin. The surname derives from the original Gaelic 'O'Leathlobhair' meaning 'descendant of leathlobhair'. Leathlobhair derives from 'Leath' meaning 'Half' and 'Lobhar' meaning 'leper'.... [
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Leckey Scottish, English, IrishOriginally Scottish, but also found in England, Northern Ireland and Ireland. Possibly derives from the barony of Leckie (meaning "place of flagstones", from Gaelic
leac, "flagstone") in Stirlingshire.
Lehane IrishLehane (Irish: Ó Liatháin) is an uncommon Irish surname, typically from County Cork. Ó Liatháin is more frequently anglicized as Lane or Lyons. The surname is also found in County Donegal where it was also anglicized from the Ulster branch of O'Liathain into Lehane, Lane, Lyons,and Lawn.
Lehigh German, IrishDerived from a Native American word "Lechauwekink", meaning "where there are forks in the stream". Variant of
Lechau .
Lemass French, IrishMeaning uncertain. It may be derived from Old French
maistre meaning "master", ultimately from Latin
magister (see
Masterson). Another theory holds that it comes from Irish Gaelic
Laighmheasa, a given name meaning "dispatch"... [
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Leydon Irish (Anglicized, Modern)His name was commemorated in numerous place-names, such as Lugdunum (Celtic *Lug
udūnon, "fort of Lugus"; modern Lyon, France), capital of the Roman province of Gallia Lugdunensis... [
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Livingstone Scottish, Irish, JewishScottish: Habitational name from a place in Lothian, originally named in Middle English as Levingston, from an owner called
Levin (
Lewin), who appears in charters of David I in the early 12th century.... [
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Loflin IrishPossibly a variant spelling of Irish Laughlin. This is a common name in NC.
Lomasney IrishFrom Gaelic
Ó Lomasna meaning "descendant of Lomasna", a byname from
lom "bare" and
asna "rib".
Looney IrishFrom the Irish name O'Luanaigh, "descendant of Luanach," a personal name meaning warrior.
Loughrey IrishReduced Anglicized form of Gaelic
Ó Luachra "descendant of
Luachra", a personal name derived from
luachair "light". The name is often translated,
Rush from a Gaelic homonym,
luachair meaning "rush".
MacConall Scottish (Anglicized, Rare), Irish (Anglicized, Rare)Anglicized form of Scottish and Irish Gaelic Mac Conaill 'son of Conall', the personalized name composing of the elements con, which is an inflected form of cú 'wolf' + gal 'valor'. Giving the ultimate meaning due to variegated spellings of this specified name, is "Battle-Wolf of High Valor."
Mac Dhíomasaigh IrishIt originally appeared in Irish-Gaelic as
Mac Dhíomasaigh, from the word
diomasach, which means "proud."
MacDowell Scottish, IrishVariant of
Mcdowell. A famous bearer is American actress Andie MacDowell (1958-). Another was the American composer and pianist Edward MacDowell (1860-1908).
MacFadyen Scottish, IrishVariant of
Mcfadden. Famous bearers include English actor Matthew Macfadyen (1974-) and Scottish actor Angus Macfadyen (1963-).
Macfhearghuis Irish, Scottish, Irish MythologyGaelic for "Son of
Fhearghuis" (also spelled "
Fearghas") and due to the complexities of pronunciation, has been spelled
MacFergus,
McKerras,
MacKersey,
MacErris,
MacFirries and anglicised as
Ferguson or
Fergusson and shortened in
Fergus,
Ferrar,
Ferrie,
Ferries,
Ferris,
Ferriss, corrupted into other forms like
Fergushill,
Fergie etc.
Mac Gafraidh IrishThe origin of the name is from the Gaelic "Mac Gafraidh" which translates as the "Son of
Godfrey", and it is presumed that the first name holders were followers of the 6th century, Saint Godfrey.
Macginty IrishPatronymic surname from the original Irish Gaelic form 'mac an tsaoi' meaning "son of the scholar". Notable namesake is Irish rugby player
Alan Leon "AJ" MacGinty.
Mac Giolla Chuda IrishMeaning ‘son of the servant of (Saint)
Chuda’, a personal name of unexplained origin. This was the name of a 7th-century abbot-bishop of Rathin in County Westmeath.... [
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Mac Giolla Iasachta IrishMeans "son of the strange youth", from Irish Gaelic
iasachta "loan" "foreign", hence denoting to a boy who transferred to another family for fosterage, a common custom in ancient Ireland.
Mac Giolla Mhartain IrishThis name denotes a devotee of St. Martin. This saint founded the first monastery in France c. 360 and was made Bishop of Tours in 372. He is the patron saint of publicans and inn-keepers and is also a patron saint of France.
Macgrath IrishFirst found in County Clare, on the west coast of Ireland in the province of Munster, where they held a family seat from ancient times.... [
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Mackinaw IrishFirst found in County Monaghan located in the Northern part of the Republic of Ireland in the province of Ulster, at Truagh where they were known as the Lords of Truagh.... [
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MacShanley IrishAnglicized form of Mac Seanlaoich. Seanlaoich comes from Gaelic "the old hero."
Mac Uighilín Irish, ScottishMeans "son of
Hugelin". the surname was allegedly adopted by the de Mandevilles, a Cambro-Norman family that had conquered an area of north Antrim, a county in Northern Ireland... [
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Maghery IrishName for a resident of the village of town of Maghery in Northern Ireland.
Maher Irish (Rare)The originally spelling was "O'Meachair" which means the 'kindly' or the 'generous'. The Maher family resided in the O'Carrol... [
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Malia IrishOriginated in Ireland from O'Malia (pronounced Oh-MAH-lee-uh) Most likely usually changed to Malia upon entry.
Mangan IrishAnglicized form of Gaelic Ó Mongáin ‘descendant of Mongán’, originally a byname for someone with a luxuriant head of hair (from mong ‘hair’, ‘mane’), borne by families from Connacht, County Limerick, and Tyrone... [
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Maughan Irish, EnglishAnglicized from the original Irish Gaelic form
Ò Mocháin meaning 'descendant of Mochain'. This name was one of the earliest known Irish surnames brought to England and remains a fairly common surname in the North East of the country.
Mayne IrishIrish, of Norman English origin but in County Fermanagh used sometimes to represent
McManus.
Mcalinden IrishFrom Irish Gaelic
Mac Giolla Fhiontáin "son of the servant of (St)
Fiontán", a personal name derived from
fionn "white".
McAllen Scottish, Irish, Scottish GaelicMcAllen or MacAllen is a Scottish and Irish surname, originating from Scottish Gaelic. Historically, the name has migrated to Ireland, where the prefix of the name has been commonly transposed with "Mc".
Mcaskie IrishAnglicized form of Gaelic
Mac Ascaidh, a patronymic from a diminutive of an Old Norse name, possibly Ascall or
Ásketill.
McAulay IrishDerived from the Irish "Mac Amhalghaidh" from the prefix Mac- (son of-) and
Amhalghaidh, Old Irish form of the name Aulay/ Auley... [
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Mccaffery IrishThe meaning of the surname MCCAFFERY is - the son of Godfrey (God's peace).
Mccall Irish (Anglicized)Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Cathmhaoil meaning "son of Cathmhaol", a personal name composed of the elements cath meaning "battle" + maol meaning "chief". Anglicized form of Mac Cathail meaning "son of Cathal".
Mccalvey IrishVariation of McKelvey. Meaning Son of rich possessions.
McCarey IrishVariant of
Carey. A famous bearer of this name was the American movie director Leo McCarey (1898-1969).
Mccarney IrishFrom either the Gaelic O Cearnaigh, meaning "victorious", or O Catharnaigh, meaning "warlike".
Mccarty IrishVariant of
MacCarthy. A famous bearer was the famous western outlaw William Henry McCarty, also known as Billy the Kid. His other aliases included William H. Bonney and Henry Antrim.