Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1889-05-22
IRISH FAMILY NAMES.
Changes by Which "Mac's" and
COS" Have Become Lost.
The Transition OF PatrOnymics nom An
Gent Irish Into the Present English
The Original of Murphy, Connolly
and Other Common Names.


Family names or hereditary surn ames
hrst became fixed in Ireland in the reign of
Brian Borumha, between the years 1902 and
1Ol4. For along time, says the Irish Times,
1t was popular error that the prefix ssOn
TO name slgnitied that the bearer was Of
royal descent, while 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
/ lies bore the prefix 90" When surnames
first became hereditary some families went
Dack several generations to select an Illus
trious ancestor from whom to take a name.
Mac signifies son, like the Anglo Norman
Fltz, acorruption of the Latin filius, a son.
''O' was taken 10 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
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 L'Estrange, MacCrossan
into Crosby, O'Reilly into Ridley, O'Donnel
into Daniels, O'Sullivan into Silvers and
Sylvan, MacCarthy into Carter, O'Neil into
Neil or Neel. MacConava was corrupted
into Conoyer, and Anglicised into Ford. In
the same way o. Marcachain was translated
into Ryder and AngliciSed Markham. Mac
Conry was corrupted into Conroy, and err
roneously translated into King. Rogers is
an Anghcisation of the Irish name Mac
Rory. Matthews is the English of Mac
Mahon. MACEDONIAN is the original from
which has been corrupted Camphill, Cam
bell, Howell and Caulfield. MacOscar in
like manner has been altered into Cosgrove
and Costello, MacMurtagh 20 Mortimer,
OClery 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 Mac Eochaldh 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; OMulryan, to Ryan; MacMur-
ragh, to Kavanagh.
The original of Murphy is O'Murchadha,
u was Anglicised O'Murchoe and latterlv
Murphy. Connolly and Connolly are de-
rived from O'Conghalaigh; Clancy is Mac
Fiannchadha in Irish, and was Anglicised
MacClancy and then Cheney; the family
once owned the barony of Rossclogher, in
the county of Letrim. Tuomy comes from
uarh-da-Mhuighe; 1T was the name of two
baronies in Kings County, and was after
wards adopted by the family bearing the
Irish name O'Maoilchein. Scully is derived
from O'Scolaighe. Quinn comes from
OCuinn, afamily once numerous and DOW
erful in the County Tyrone. Phelan and
Whelan are each corruptions of SFaolian;
O'Toole in Irish is O'Tuathail. Sullivan,
with and without the o prefixed, is derived
from O'Sullebhain.
The original Kelly, in Irish O'Ceallaigh,
was descended from Aedh- Slaine, monarch
OF ireland. It's last representative was
Congalach O'Kelly, Lord of Bregia. who
died in 1892. The family afterwards became
scattered, so that there are but few par
ishes in the country but has some of these
Kellys.
IL Will be a surprise to many to learn that
Byron is not an English name, but a corrlIp-
ton of the ancient name of O'Beirne, an
other corruption of the name being Bruin.
OBrollaghan is the original of Bradley.
while in Scotland it is made Brodie Har-
rlngton is an Anghcised form of o. Heraghtv
and O'Hennessy. O'Hiomhair was changed
to Ivers by the gentry and to Howard byt the
peasantry. O'AIulligan in the same way has
been changed to Molyneaux and Baldwin.
O'Honeen to Green, ORourke to Rookie.
MacFirbis to Forbes, O'Cornain to Corbett.
O'Grieghan to Graham, O'Heyne to Hindes.
Hynes, Hine and Haynes or Hayne, O'Bar-
ran to harrington and Barron, MacHugh to
Hughes, MacGillamire to Gilmore, O'Leyue
TO Lyons, O'Houlahan to Holland, O'Drum
to Drummond.
The Irish in early times also had distinct
i've Christian names and these have also I'm.
dergoue change similar to those in the sur
names, though frequently there have been
no cause for the Anglicisation; thus Cor
mack has been rendered into Charles, though
the latter is not translation and has little
similarity in sound Mahon was turned into
Matthew; Teige, into Timothy; Art, into
Arthur; Donal, into Daniel; Goron, into
Jeoffry; Finghin, into Florence; Feradach.
into Frederic; Eoghan, into Owen, and
many others have undergone like changes.