Every Sunday a Letter from Ireland arrives in my email box from Mike Collins. In this week's letter, a reader named Hamish asked a question: how can you tell if a name is Scottish or Irish? 

Collins replied with an example of how Scottish and Irish names sometimes grew apart over time:

"...Starting at the beginning:

• James (originally known as Jacob) was one of the 12 apostles from the bible.
• King James 1st made the name popular as a boy’s name when he assumed the throne of Scotland in the 1600s. Its popularity grew further when he became King of a united Scotland and England.
• However, the Irish language has a problem pronouncing the "J" sound in "James" - and so changes it to a "Sh" sound. As a result, James became "Séamus" (pronounced "Shay-mus") in Irish/Scots Gaelic. This was also the way for a number of other biblical names - such as "John" which became "Seán" (pronounced "Shawn").
• Now, bear with me on this step. When you address someone with their Irish/Gaelic name - the grammar changes a little. If I wanted to say: "How are you, James?" I would say:

"Conas a tá tú, a Shéamais?" (pronounced "Cunus a taw too a hay-mish?").

• The insertion of the H into the name "Shéamais" causes the sound of the S to disappear! Over time, the name "Seamus" became anglicised as "Hamish" (pronounced "Hay-mish") in parts of Scotland due to this little twist of Gaelic grammar."

You can read past Letters from Ireland and subscribe yourself (free) by clicking here.