Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-05-01
IRISH FAMILY NAMES.
Changes by Which "Mac's" and
 eos" Have Become Lost.
The Transition of Patronymics from An- cient Irish Into tho Present English The Original of Murphy, Connolly
 and Other Common Names.

Family names or hereditary surn ames first became fixed in Ireland in the reign of Brian Borumha, between the years 1OO2 and 1Ol4 For along time, says the Irish Times, it was popular error that the prefix 70" to a name signified that the bearer was of royal descent, while a Mac had no special significance of high social standing. This error has been exploded by showing that several Kings in Ireland have borne the prefix of Mac to their names, while some of the lowest and most obscure fam flies bore the prefix "O." When surnames first became hereditary some families went back several generations to select an illus | trious ancestor from whom to take a name. Mac signifies son, like the Anglo-Norman Fitz, a corruption of the Latin f1lius, a son. 70" was taken to signify that the name | was taken from grandfather or more re- | mote ancestor.
 Appended is list of some of the popular | names to be met with every day, showing | the transition of the name from the ancient
 Irish into the present English. In some in- l stances several different names were made from the anne Irish name. Generally the change was made into something bearing similar sound to that of the original.
 Mac and O'Gowan into Smith, MacIntyre into Carpenter, MacSpallane into Spencer.
 MacCongry into LEstrange, MacCrossan
 
 into Daniels, O'Sufivan into Silvers and
 Silvan, MacCarthy into Carter, O'Neil into l Neil or Neel. MacConava was corrupted
 into Conover, and Anglicised into Ford. In | the same way O'Marcachain was translated
 into Ryder and Anglicised Markham. Mac
 Conry was corrupted into Conroy, and er-
 roneously translated into King. Rogers is
 an Anglicisation of the Irish name Mac
 Rory. Matthews is the English of Mac | MahOn Mac(,Owan is the original from
 which has been corrupted Camphill, Cam
 bell, Howell and Caulfeld. MacOscar in like manner has been altered into Cosgrove
 and Costello. MacMurtagh to Mortimer, O'Clery to Clarke and Clerkin, O'Cindellan
 to Cunningham. The O'Dorcy's, of Galway,
 altered their name to Darcy and D'Orsay,
 to give the impression that they were de-
 scendants of the Anglo Norman family of
 Darcy O'Dulany is the original from
 which is derived Delany and DeLani
 Many Irish names have been abbreviated, , not through any desire on the part of the bearer to hide their origin, but in order to render the names more pronouncable in
 English. Of these MacEochaldh is only an
 example and is now known as McKeogh and Keogh; MacGillapatrick, to Fitzpatrick } MacGillaroe, to Gilroy and Kilroy; MacGilla Brighde, to Mcbride; MacGillafnen, to Lin
 den and Leonard; MacGennis, to Ennis and
 Guinness; O'Mulryan, to Ryan; MacMur- ragh, to Kavanagh.
 The original of Murphy is O'Murchadha } it was Anglicised O'Murchoe and lattery } Murphy. Connolly and Connolly are de rived from O'Conghalaigh; Clancy is Mac l Fiannchadha in Irish, and was Anglicised 3 MacClancy and then Clency; the family
 once owned the barony of Rossclogher, iT the county of Letrim. Tuomy comes from f Tuarh- -da- -Mhuighe; 1t was the name of two ' baronies in Kings County, and was after
 wards adopted by the family bearing tht Irish name O'Maoilchein. Scully is derived . from O'Scolaighe. Quinn comes iron s O. Quinn, family once numerous and pow r erfui in the County Tyrone. Phelan ant
 Whelan are each corruptions of O'Faolian
 O'Toole in Irish is O'Tuathail. Sullivan
 with and without the O prefixed, is derive,
 from OSullebhain.
 e The original Kelly, in Irish O'CA@laigh
 was descended from Aedh Slaine, monarc l. of Ireland. It's last representative wa V Congalach O'Kelly, Lord of Bregia, wh e died in 1292. The family afterwards becam il scattered, so that there are but few par h ishes in the country but has some of thes if Kellys.
 It will be surprise to many to learn tha l. Byron is not an English name, but corruI tion of the anGent name of O'Beirne, an other corruption of the name being Bruir OBrollaghan is the original of Bradley # while in Scotland it is made Brodie. Hal ;. rington is an Anglicisee form of O. 'Heraght , and O'Hennessy. O'Hiomhair was change ,'' to Ivers by the gentry and to Howard by tn ,. peasantry. O'Mulligan in the same way ha ,,, been changed to Molyneaux and Baldwin O'Honeen to Green, O'Rourke to Roolz ;. MacFirbis to Forbes, O'Cornain to Corbet ll,. O'Grieghan to Graham, O'Heyne to Hinde ,a Hynes, Hine and Haynes or Hayne, O'Ba II ran to Burlington and Barron, MacHugh t
 Hughes, MacGillamire to Gilmore, OLeyn to Lyons, OHoulahan to Holland, ODrul y to Drummond
 77e The Irish in early times also had distinc S' i've Christian names and these have also Ill D. dergone change similar to those in the su !, names, though frequently there have bee > no cause for the Anglicisation; thus Go H. mack has been rendered into Charles, ,thoug 'e the latter is not translation and has lit y similarity in sound. Mahon was turned in ld Matthew; Teige, into Timothy; Art, int at Arthur; Donal, into Daniel; Goron, in
 Jeoffry; Finghin, into Florence; Feradac
 into Frederic; Eoghan, into Owen, an
 many others have undergone like change ,.- crDANHE O0IMClREhNCc