Dealing with Irish Names

The Problem with Irish Names

What name should you look for - what did people call your ancestors?

This seems like a silly question but it is an important one. Our ancestors often used various names and their names may have been recorded differently depending upon the recorder.

Did they use different given names (first names) during their lifetime?

It is important to know the various forms a name may have taken and the ways a given name may have been recorded. It may have been recorded in Latin in a church record. A person may have decided to use either the English or Gaelic version of their name at various times of their life. Many Irish used nickname versions of their given name. Then, of course, there is the possibility that a person decided to use a middle name as their given name. If you are not aware of the possible variations, you may miss your ancestor as they were recorded in one source or another.

Because Ireland was the destination for many immigrant groups over the ages, an Irish surname may be of Gaelic, Norman, Palatine, Huguenot, English or Scottish origin.

Language variations: English, Gaelic, Latin
- Latin: Gulielmus = William; Jacobus = Jacob or James
- Gaelic: Diarmaid, Darby or Dermot = Jeremiah or Jerome

Nicknames: Kate = Catherine, Con = Cornelius, Lackey = Lawrence, Sarah = Cecilia, Bridget = Bedilia, Bedina, Bessy, Bess, Bessie, Biddy, Brenda, Breeda, Briddy, Birde, Brideen, Bridie, Cordelia, Dillei/Killy, Dina and Phidelia.

Male first names used interchangeably:

Alexander	Alaster, Sandy
Edward	Edmond
Florence	Finian
Gerald	Garrett, Garret, Gerald
Owen	Eugene
Hugh	Hubert
Moses	Aidan
Peter	Pierce
Ulysses	Ylick
Connor	Cornelius

Female first names used interchangeably:

Bridget	Bedilia, Delia, Bessy
Gobinet	Abigail, Deborah
Johanna, Joanna	Jane
Julia	Judith
Winifred	Unity, Una, Uny

Abbreviations applicable to both sexes:

Joe	Joseph	Josephine, Johanna
Phil	Philip	Philomena
Fred	Frederick	Frederica
Matty	Matthew	Matilda
Jemmine	James	Jemima
Harry	Henry	Harriet
Ally	Aloysius	Alice

See also

Irish Equivalents for English names
Spelling changes of surnames

Commonly used naming patterns in families may be a clue:

For males:

First born son named after his father's father.
Second born son named after his mother's father.
Third born son named after his father.
Fourth born son names after his father's oldest brother.
Fifth born son named after his father's 2^ndoldest brother or his mother's oldest brother.

For females:

First born daughter named after her mother's mother.
Second born daughter named after her father's mother.
Third born daughter named after her mother.
Fourth born daughter named after her mother's oldest sister.

Some Resources for learning more abut Irish names and name variations:

Realize variations affect Soundex code.
Surname distribution can be helpful (look up in Griffith’s Householders Index).
A good source for surname variations is Varieties and Synonymes of Surnames and Christian Names in Ireland.
What is considered to be the foremost authority on Irish surnames is Edward MacLysaght's The Surnames of Ireland.
John Grenham's article Origin of Irish Surnames may be of interest.
Robert Matheson's Varieties and Synonymes of Surnames and Christian Names in Ireland is a good source for finding name variations used around the end of the 19^thcentury.