Manx surnames

Manx surnames are surnames which originate on the Isle of Man. These reflect the recorded history of the island which can be divided into three different eras - Gaelic, Norse, and English. In consequence most Manx surnames are derived from the Gaelic, Norse or English languages.
==Origins and sources==
During the first period of recorded history the island was occupied by Celtic speaking peoples and later Christianised by Irish missionaries.
By the 9th century Vikings, generally from Norway, ruled the island: Old Norse speaking settlers intermarried with the Gaelic speaking native population, and Norse personal names found their way into common Manx usage.
By the 13th century the island became a Scottish possession, but passed back and forth between Scotland and England for a hundred years before finally coming under British rule, resulting in open immigration from the occupying country.
Under the English many surnames introduced to the island were translated into Manx, while many indigenous Manx surnames became Anglicised. Immigration from Ireland brought Hiberno-Norman surnames to the island as well.
Very few Manx surnames are recorded prior to the arrival of the Stanleys in 1405. The majority of early surnames are recorded in the Manorial Rolls dating from 1510-1513. More recent sources of surnames are Parish records from the beginning of the 17th century.
Arthur William Moore analysed the origin of Manx surnames in use at the beginning of the 19th century: of 170 surnames, about 100 (65 percent) are of Celtic origin while about 30 (17.5 percent) were of Norse-Gaelic origin.
==Patronymics and the loss of the prefix Mac==
Patronymic names were formed by the use of the Gaelic prefix Mac to the father's name. The "Irish" O (Ó) never took root among Manx names.
By the early 16th century, the Mac prefix was almost universally used on the island; but, by the 17th century, it had almost completely disappeared. The pronunciation of the prefix Mac was unstressed, so that the final consonant became first consonant in the second element of the name (the father's personal name). When the Mac prefix fell out of use, the final consonant became the first sound of the surname. Because of this, many Manx names characteristically begin with the letters C, K, or Q.
Patronymic forms of personal names beginning with element Giolla "servant of" (for instance, MacGillchrist) underwent a transformation of their own; the prefix Mac and the element Giolla were contracted into Myley. For example, MacGillchrist became Mylechreest or Mylchreest.
== Matrilineal Ine==
Prior to the mid-17th century there were many instances of female surnames using the prefix Ine, a Gaelic contraction meaning "daughter," cognate to the Irish prefixes Ní and Nic and Scottish Gaelic Nic, derived from iníon "daughter". From the mid-17th century onwards the prefix generally fell out of use. According to J. J. Kneen, there are several instances of feminine surnames using lne as late as the early 19th century,
==The use of "Alias"==
During the 18th century, formal documents in English (for example parish registers and probate records) made use of the Latin "Alias" to incorporate the maiden name of a married woman or widow, for example "Mr. Robert Kelly of the Rock in the parish of Marown and his wife Isabel Kelly als Clucas".Narasimham, J., (1986) 'The Manx Family Tree', 35
==Surname comparisons tables==
===1986 surname rank by occurrences===
The following table shows the top ten surnames found in the 1986 telephone directory on the Isle of Man. The ten names are compared to the 1881 their census ranking.
1986	Surname 	1881
1 	Kelly 	1
2 	Corlett 	4
3 	Quayle 	2
4 	Moore 	7
5 	Cain (Caine was 47)	3
6 	Christian (surname)	5
7 	Kneale 	18
7 	Teare 	14
9 	Clague 	6
10 	Shimmin 	16
11 	Stevenson 	18
===1881 surname rank by occurrences===
The following table ranks Manx surnames by occurrences in the 1881 census. See footnote for the legend to the table.
 
Surname 	Total	Frequency	Index
Kelly 	2118 	3.9041 	35.6479
Quayle 	1349 	2.4866 	375.7242
Corlett 	1139 	2.0995 	368.3342
Moore 	944 	1.7401 	8.7017
Clague 	882 	1.6258 	456.7345
Christian	873 	1.6092 	162.2616
Cain 	790 	1.4562 	70.1231
Quirk 	637 	1.1742 	246.7653
Watterson	632 	1.1650 	359.6836
Cannell 	612 	1.1281 	260.8807
===1881 rank by population index===
This table lists the surnames of the 1881 census which have the highest percentage of appearing on the Isle of Man. The important column in this table is the Index column. This table shows the most "Manx" surnames in Great Britain. See the previous footnote for the legend to the table.
Surname 	Total	Frequency	Index
Carine 	78 	0.1438 	538.3023
Kewish 	89 	0.1641 	528.5036
Comish 	108 	0.1991 	497.0087
Clague 	882 	1.6258 	456.7345
Costain 	304 	0.5604 	448.7085
Corkill 	611 	1.1262 	444.9785
Kennaugh	243 	0.4479 	442.7036
Faragher	295 	0.5438 	424.0943
Kissack 	323 	0.5954 	423.5510
Shimmin 	609 	1.1226 	421.2784
==See also==
*Family name, description of family names
*History of the Isle of Man, Manx history
*Has Anybody Here Seen Kelly?
==Footnotes==
==References==
Surnames
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