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Quick and Easy Gaelic Names

Formerly Published as "Quick and Easy Gaelic Bynames"

3rd Edition

The purpose of this article is to explain how to form the most basic styles of medieval Irish or Scottish Gaelic name & byname. It does not cover all of the different types of byname that can be documented for Gaels in Scotland and Ireland before 1600, but only the most common (the simple patronymic style) and a few others. Most styles of Gaelic byname are variations on or include the simple patronymic style.

The issue of what kind of people would have had a Gaelic name & byname is not addressed, and it is up to the individual to determine if the Irish or Scottish person in question would use a Gaelic name & byname. [Note: Large number of medieval Scots and some Irish were not Gaels and so would not have had a Gaelic name & byname! For more information about names in Scotland, see the article Scottish Names 101.]

Given Names

Both Irish and Scottish Gaels used only one given name (that is, "first name" or "Christian name"). Multiple given names, or "middle names", do not seem to have been used in either Ireland or Scotland until some time after the 16th century.

Medieval Gaels, like modern parents today, didn't choose just any random word or combination of sounds when naming their children. There were definite, if unconscious, rules about what could be used as a name and what could not. In each period and naming culture there was a pool of special words that were considered acceptable for names, and children were given names from that name pool only. (There were no medieval Gaelic equivalents of "Moon Unit" or "Dweezil"!1)

Some of these names were also regular words still in use in medieval Gaelic with meanings that were still known and recognized, just as modernly "Heather" and "Victor" are names and "heather" and "victor" are regular English words. Other names were used only as names with their original meanings often completely unknown, just as modernly "George" and "Jennifer" are only names with no other use or meaning. (There were no baby name books in medieval Ireland or Scotland!) But even when the original meanings of given names were known, it appears to have been no more significant regarding the person bearing the name than it would be modernly. We don't expect women named "Heather" to be particularly heathery, nor every man named "Thomas" to be a twin.2

The name pool from which names were chosen varied over time and with the specific Gaelic naming culture (Irish or Scottish). In the early part of the Middle Ages, the name pools in Gaelic Scotland and Ireland were more or less the same, since the Gaels came to Scotland from Ireland and brought their names with them as they brought the Gaelic language. But over time the name pools diverged. Some early Gaelic names that went out of fashion in one culture remained in fashion in the other. Some new names came into one culture's name pool but not the other's. So, Scottish Gaels in the 16th century gave children 16th century Scottish Gaelic names, which were not necessarily the same as the 16th century Irish Gaelic names 16th century Irish Gaels gave to children. Likewise, Irish Gaels in the 12th century gave children 12th century Irish Gaelic names, Scottish Gaels in the 14th century gave children 14th century Scottish Gaelic names, and so on.

As elsewhere in Europe, the various Gaelic naming cultures each had one set of given names that were considered appropriate for men, a different set of given names that were considered appropriate for women, and a smaller set of given names that could be used for either men or women. Apart from this smaller set of gender neutral names, women were not given men's names nor were men given women's names. For example, just as today people do not name girls "Robert" nor name boys "Elizabeth", 12th century Scottish Gaels did not name their girls "Morgan" nor their boys "Muirgel".

So, medieval Gaels each had a single given name chosen from a pool of names that depended on gender, specific time period, and specific Gaelic naming culture.

Simple Patronymic Byname

The simplest way to construct an historically accurate Gaelic name & byname is to select an a single appropriate Gaelic given name (that is, "first name" or "Christian name") for the individual and a single appropriate Gaelic given name for that individual's father and then put them together as a given name with patronymic byname, as detailed below. This pattern re-creates what is by far the most common form of Gaelic name & byname found in medieval and early modern Scotland, and one of the two most common forms of Gaelic name & byname found in medieval and early modern Ireland.

Men

The standard way to form a name using a simple patronymic byname for men is:

<single given name> mac <father's given name (in genitive case & sometimes lenited)>

which means

<given name> son <of father's given name>

For example, Donnchadh who is the son of Fearchar mac Domhnaill would be:

Donnchadh mac Fearchair

which means

Donnchadh son of Fearchar (or, fully Anglicized, Duncan son of Farquhar)

Whether the father's given name should be lenited depends on period and dialect. In late period some Gaelic dialects (mainly in Scotland) would lenite the father's given name, but otherwise the father's given name was not lenited in men's simple patronymic bynames. Note that even in dialects that did normally lenite the father's given name, they did not do so if it started with the letter <C> or a vowel.

Women

The standard way to form a name using a simple patronymic byname for women is:

<single given name> inghean <father's given name (in genitive case & always lenited unless starting with D, T, L, N, R, or a vowel)>

which means

<given name> daughter <of father's given name>

For example, Dearbhorgaill who is the daughter of Fearchar mac Domhnaill would be:

Dearbhorgaill inghean Fhearchair

which means

Dearbhorgaill daughter of Fearchar (or, fully Anglicized, Dervorgilla daughter of Farquhar)

Note that it is the father, and not the mother, whose given name is used to form the simple patronymic byname. Gaelic bynames formed from the mother's name (metronymics) are vanishingly rare to nonexistent in both Scotland and Ireland. Only a few examples of a medieval Gaelic metronymic have been found, all of which involved royalty (usually in unusual circumstances).

Period

This basic style of Gaelic name & simple patronymic byname is appropriate in both Gaelic Scotland and Ireland throughout the Middle Ages and Early Modern period.

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Clan Affiliation Byname

In Scotland, clan affiliations were not normally used in Gaelic bynames. You do not need to have any clan affiliation in mind to form a historically accurate Scottish Gaelic byname. Even if you do have a clan with which you wish the individual to be associated, you would not use this information in forming their Gaelic byname. (The Irish style of clan affiliation byname, discussed below, was only very rarely used in Scotland, and even then it seems only for a few of those with known paternal links to Ireland, and so reflected an Irish clan affiliation, not a Scottish one.)

In Ireland, clan affiliations began to be used to form bynames from the 10th century and were often used to form bynames from about the 11th century. Simple patronymic bynames and clan affiliation bynames are the two most common types of Gaelic byname found in medieval and early modern Ireland.

Irish Men

The standard way to form a name using an Irish clan affiliation byname for men is:

<single given name> Ó <eponymous clan ancestor's name (in genitive case)>

which means

<given name> male descendant <of eponymous clan ancestor>

For example, Donnchadh who is the son of Fearchar Ó Conchobhair would be:

Donnchadh Ó Conchobhair

which means

Donnchadh male descendant of Conchobhar (or, fully Anglicized, Duncan male descendant of Connor)

Note: if the eponymous clan ancestor's name starts with a vowel, an h should be prepended to it after Ó (for example: Donnchadh Ó hAodha rather than Donnchadh Ó Aodha).

Irish Women

The standard way to form a name using an Irish clan affiliation byname for women is:

<single given name> inghean Uí <eponymous clan ancestor's name (in genitive case & always lenited unless starting with a vowel)>

which means

<given name> daughter of a male descendant <of eponymous clan ancestor>

For example, Dearbhorgaill who is the daughter of Fearchar Ó Conchobhair would be:

Dearbhorgaill inghean Uí Chonchobhair

which means

Dearbhorgaill daughter of a male descendant of Conchobhar (or, fully Anglicized, Dervorgilla daughter of a male descendant of Connor)

Clan Ancestor

Note that all known medieval and early modern Irish clans were named after men. There are no known examples of clans named after women.

Period

This style of Gaelic name & clan affiliation byname is appropriate in Ireland (but not Scotland) from the 10th century, but only becomes common from about the 11th century.

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Descriptive Adjective Byname

Descriptive bynames were sometimes used in both Gaelic Scotland and Ireland. These bynames were usually adjectives describing concrete rather than fanciful characteristics, such as beag (small), reamhar (stout), mór (big), ruadh (red), bán (fair), and dubh (black). [Note that even someone who was commonly referred to by a given name and descriptive adjective byname only would also have had a patronymic byname available to them which would probably have been used at least occassionally, especially in formal documents; see Complex Byname Styles: Descriptive Adjective with Simple Patronymic Bynames, below.]

Men

The standard way to form a name using a descriptive adjective byname for men is:

<single given name> <descriptive adjective>

which means

<descriptive adjective> <given name>

For example:

Donnchadh Mór

which means

Big Donnchadh (or, fully Anglicized, Big Duncan)

Women

The standard way to form a name using a descriptive adjective byname for women is:

<single given name> <descriptive adjective (always lenited with certain exceptions)>

which means

<descriptive adjective> <given name>

For example:

Dearbhorgaill Mhór

which means

Big Dearbhorgaill (or, fully Anglicized, Big Dervorgilla)

Whether a woman's descriptive adjective byname should be lenited depends on the last letter(s) in her given name and the first letter in the descriptive adjective byname. The default is that a woman's descriptive adjective byname should be lenited unless it starts with a vowel or the given name and byname meet the criteria indicated below.

A woman's descriptive adjective byname is always lenited unless (Sorted by last letter(s) of given name:) (Sorted by first letter of descriptive adjective byname:) The given name

ends with AND the descriptive adjective byname

begins with The given name

ends with AND the descriptive adjective byname

begins with -a a vowel any letter A- -b B-, or a vowel -b, -m B- -c, -ch C-, G-, or a vowel -c, -ch, -g C- -e a vowel -d, -t, -th, -l, -n, -s D- -d D-, T-, or a vowel any letter E- -f F-, or a vowel -f F- -g C-, G-, or a vowel -c, -ch, -g G- -i a vowel any letter I- -l L-, N-, R-, D-, T-, or a vowel -l, -n, -r, -s L- -m M-, B-, P-, or a vowel -m M- -n L-, N-, R-, D-, T-, or a vowel -l, -n, -r, -s N- -o a vowel any letter O- -p P-, or a vowel -m, -p P- -r L-, N-, R-, or a vowel -l, -n, -r, -s R- -s S-, L-, N-, R-, D-, T-, or a vowel -s S- -t, -th D-, T-, or a vowel -d, -t, -th, -l, -n, -s T- -u a vowel any letter U- In all of the above cases, a woman's descriptive adjective byname is not lenited. In any other case, it is lenited.

Period

This style of Gaelic name & descriptive adjective byname is appropriate in both Gaelic Scotland and Ireland throughout the Middle Ages and Early Modern period.

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Complex Byname Styles

Two Generation Patronymic Byname

Two generation patronymic bynames were sometimes used in both Gaelic Scotland and Ireland. These bynames are formed from the names of the individual's father and grandfather (father's father), as detailed below.

Men

The standard way to form a name using a two generation patronymic byname for men is:

<single given name> mac <father's given name (in genitive case & sometimes lenited)> mhic <grandfather's given name (in genitive case & always lenited unless starting with C or a vowel)>

which means

<given name> son <of father's given name> (of) son <of grandfather's given name>

For example, Donnchadh who is the son of Fearchar mac Domhnaill would be:

Donnchadh mac Fearchair mhic Dhomhnaill

which means

Donnchadh son of Fearchar son of Domhnall (or, fully Anglicized, Duncan son of Farquhar son of Donald)

Whether the father's given name should be lenited depends on period and dialect. In late period some Gaelic dialects (mainly in Scotland) would lenite the father's given name, but otherwise the father's given name was not lenited in men's simple patronymic bynames. Note that even in dialects that did normally lenite the father's given name, they did not do so if it started with the letter <C> or a vowel.

Women

The standard way to form a name using a two generation patronymic byname for women is:

<single given name> inghean <father's given name (in genitive case & always lenited unless starting with D, T, L, N, R, or a vowel)> mhic <grandfather's given name (in genitive case & always lenited unless starting with C or a vowel)>

which means

<given name> daughter <of father's given name> (of) son <of grandfather's given name>

For example, Dearbhorgaill who is the daughter of Fearchar mac Domhnaill would be:

Dearbhorgaill inghean Fhearchair mhic Dhomhnaill

which means

Dearbhorgaill daughter of Fearchar son of Domhnall (or, fully Anglicized, Dervorgilla daughter of Farquhar son of Donald)

Note that it is the father and the father's father, and not the mother or grandmother, whose given names are used to form the two generation patronymic byname. Gaelic bynames formed from the mother's or grandmother's name (metronymics) are vanishingly rare to nonexistent in both Scotland and Ireland. Only a few examples of a medieval Gaelic metronymic have been found, all of which involved royalty (usually in unusual circumstances).

Period

This style of Gaelic name & two generation patronymic byname is appropriate in both Gaelic Scotland and Ireland throughout the Middle Ages and Early Modern period.

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Irish Simple Patronymic with Clan Affiliation Bynames

In Ireland, clan affiliation bynames were often combined with simple patronymic bynames (again, common from about the 11th century, though possible from the 10th century).

Irish Men

The standard way to form a name using combined simple patronymic and Irish clan affiliation bynames for men is:

<single given name> mac <father's given name (in genitive case & sometimes lenited)> Uí <eponymous clan ancestor's name (in genitive case & always lenited unless starting with a vowel)>

which means

<given name> son <of father's given name> (of) male descendant <of eponymous clan ancestor>

For example, Donnchadh who is the son of Fearchar mac Domhnaill Uí Conchobhair would be:

Donnchadh mac Fearchair Uí Chonchobhair

which means

Donnchadh son of Fearchar male descendant of Conchobhar (or, fully Anglicized, Duncan son of Farquhar male descendant of Connor)

Whether the father's given name should be lenited depends on period and dialect. In late period some Gaelic dialects (mainly in Scotland) would lenite the father's given name, but otherwise the father's given name was not lenited in men's simple patronymic bynames. Note that even in dialects that did normally lenite the father's given name, they did not do so if it started with the letter <C> or a vowel.

Irish Women

The standard way to form a name using combined simple patronymic and Irish clan affiliation bynames for women is:

<single given name> inghean <father's given name (in genitive case & always lenited unless starting with D, T, L, N, R, or a vowel)> Uí <eponymous clan ancestor's name (in genitive case & always lenited unless starting with a vowel)>

which means

<given name> daughter <of father's given name> (of) male descendant <of eponymous clan ancestor>

For example, Dearbhorgaill who is the daughter of Fearchar mac Domhnaill Uí Conchobhair would be:

Dearbhorgaill inghean Fhearchair Uí Chonchobhair

which means

Dearbhorgaill daughter of Fearchar male descendant of Conchobhar (or, fully Anglicized, Dervorgilla daughter of Farquhar male descendant of Connor)

Note that it is the father, and not the mother, whose given name is used to form the simple patronymic byname. Gaelic bynames formed from the mother's name (metronymics) are vanishingly rare to nonexistent in both Scotland and Ireland. Only a few examples of a medieval Gaelic metronymic have been found, all of which involved royalty (usually in unusual circumstances).

Clan Ancestor

Note that all known medieval and early modern Irish clans were named after men. There are no known examples of clans named after women.

Period

This style of Gaelic name & simple patronymic with clan affiliation bynames is appropriate in Ireland (but not Scotland) from the 10th century, but only becomes common from about the 11th century.

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Descriptive Adjective with Simple Patronymic Bynames

In Gaelic Scotland and Ireland, when descriptive adjective bynames were used they were often combined with simple patronymic bynames.

Men

The standard way to form a name using combined descriptive adjective with simple patronymic bynames for men is:

<single given name> <descriptive adjective> mac <father's given name (in genitive case & sometimes lenited)>

which means

<descriptive adjective> <given name> son <of father's given name>

For example, Donnchadh who is the son of Fearchar mac Domhnaill would be:

Donnchadh Mór mac Fearchair

which means

Big Donnchadh son of Fearchar (or, fully Anglicized, Big Duncan son of Farquhar)

Whether the father's given name should be lenited depends on period and dialect. In late period some Gaelic dialects (mainly in Scotland) would lenite the father's given name, but otherwise the father's given name was not lenited in men's simple patronymic bynames. Note that even in dialects that did normally lenite the father's given name, they did not do so if it started with the letter <C> or a vowel.

Women

The standard way to form a name using combined descriptive adjective with simple patronymic bynames for women is:

<single given name> <descriptive adjective (always lenited with certain exceptions)> inghean <father's given name (in genitive case & always lenited unless starting with D, T, L, N, R, or a vowel)>

which means

<descriptive adjective> <given name> daughter <of father's given name>

For example, Dearbhorgaill who is the daughter of Fearchar mac Domhnaill would be:

Dearbhorgaill Mhór inghean Fhearchair

which means

Big Dearbhorgaill daughter of Fearchar (or, fully Anglicized, Big Dervorgilla daughter of Farquhar)

Whether a woman's descriptive adjective byname should be lenited depends on the last letter(s) in her given name and the first letter in the descriptive adjective byname. The default is that a woman's descriptive adjective byname should be lenited unless it starts with a vowel or the given name and byname meet the criteria indicated below.

A woman's descriptive adjective byname is always lenited unless (Sorted by last letter(s) of given name:) (Sorted by first letter of descriptive adjective byname:) The given name

ends with AND the descriptive adjective byname

begins with The given name

ends with AND the descriptive adjective byname

begins with -a a vowel any letter A- -b B-, or a vowel -b, -m B- -c, -ch C-, G-, or a vowel -c, -ch, -g C- -e a vowel -d, -t, -th, -l, -n, -s D- -d D-, T-, or a vowel any letter E- -f F-, or a vowel -f F- -g C-, G-, or a vowel -c, -ch, -g G- -i a vowel any letter I- -l L-, N-, R-, D-, T-, or a vowel -l, -n, -r, -s L- -m M-, B-, P-, or a vowel -m M- -n L-, N-, R-, D-, T-, or a vowel -l, -n, -r, -s N- -o a vowel any letter O- -p P-, or a vowel -m, -p P- -r L-, N-, R-, or a vowel -l, -n, -r, -s R- -s S-, L-, N-, R-, D-, T-, or a vowel -s S- -t, -th D-, T-, or a vowel -d, -t, -th, -l, -n, -s T- -u a vowel any letter U- In all of the above cases, a woman's descriptive adjective byname is not lenited. In any other case, it is lenited.

Note that it is the father, and not the mother, whose given name is used to form the simple patronymic byname. Gaelic bynames formed from the mother's name (metronymics) are vanishingly rare to nonexistent in both Scotland and Ireland. Only a few examples of a medieval Gaelic metronymic have been found, all of which involved royalty (usually in unusual circumstances).

Period

This style of Gaelic name & descriptive adjective with simple patronymic bynames is appropriate in both Gaelic Scotland and Ireland throughout the Middle Ages and Early Modern period.

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Vanishingly Rare Byname Styles

As indicated in the introduction to this article, other styles of bynames in addition to those explained above were used in medieval Gaelic names. However, there are certain types of byname that, while popular in other naming cultures in medieval Europe, were vanishingly rare in Gaelic bynames and therefore are poor choices for medieval Gaelic name re-creation.

Locative Bynames (Vanishingly Rare)

Locative bynames indicate locations or places. These may be names of places, such as the name of a farm, town, region, territory, or country, or they may be descriptions of places based on some topographical feature, such as a mill, bridge, lake, or the like. For example, the English names "William de Chester" identifies William as "of Chester" (the name of a town in England) and "Thomas Attewode" describes Thomas as "at the wood".[Reaney, s.nn. Chester, Atwood] Locative bynames were common in many medieval European naming cultures, including English, French, and German. In contrast, they were vanishingly rare among Gaelic bynames. There are few examples of Gaels being identified as "of <name of someplace>" or "at <description of someplace>" or the like in their Gaelic names. Of the known examples, most occur in the names of unusual individuals such as the Lord of the Isles, and so are not necessarily representative of standard Gaelic naming.

Note that descriptive adjective bynames that indicate nationality are not the same as they type of locative bynames described above, and such nationality adjective bynames were used in Gaelic, although they were not at all common. To use Anglicized examples, while the Gaelic forms of names such as "Donald of Scotland" were apparently not used by typical Gaels, names such as "Scottish Donald" were occasionally used. However, while not vanishingly rare, such bynames were still fairly rare.

Occupational Bynames (Vanishingly Rare to Non-Existent)

Occupational bynames indicate an individual's occupation. For example, the English names "Henry le Brewere", "William le Smyth", and "William le Taillur" indicate men who were a brewer, a smith, and a tailor, respectively.[Reaney, s.nn. Brewer, Smith, Taylor] Occupational bynames were common in many medieval European naming cultures, including English, French, and German. In contrast, they were vanishingly rare to non-existent among Gaelic bynames.

Note that official bynames -- bynames that indicted a person's office, rank, or title -- are not the same as the occupational bynames described above, and such official bynames were used in Gaelic. So while there don't appear to be Gaelic bynames describing that individual as a smith or a tailor, there are bynames identifying Gaels as earls, bishops, abbots, priests, judges, and the like.

Note also that while Gaels don't seem to have used occupational bynames, simple patronymic bynames were sometimes formed from the father's occupation rather than his given name. So while there don't appear to be Gaelic bynames describing that individual as a smith or a tailor, there are simple patronymic bynames that identify Gaels as the child of a smith or a tailor. The range of occupations used in simple patronymic bynames, however, appears to be somewhat limited.

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Ní and Nic

<Ní> and <nic> are both forms that were not used in Gaelic until sometime after 1600. <Ní> is a contraction of <inghean uí>; although in the 16th century <inghean uí> was pronounced like modern <ní> (roughly

ee\) in some dialects, the spelling <ní> did not come to be used in Gaelic until later. Similarly, <nic> is a contraction of <inghean mhic>; although in the 16th century <inghean mhic> was pronounced like modern <nic> (roughly

eek\) in some dialects, the spelling <nic> did not come to be used in Gaelic until later.

For more information about the use of <inghean uí> in bynames, see Clan Affiliation Byname, above.

In simple patronymic bynames, <inghean mhic> arises when the father's name starts with <Mac>. This is because when a name starting with <Mac> -- such as the given names <Mac Raith> or <Mac Beatha> -- is put in the genitive case and lenited, the <Mac> part becomes <Mhic>.

For example, Dearbhorgaill who is the daughter of Mac Beatha mac Domhnaill would be:

Dearbhorgaill inghean Mhic Beatha

which means

Dearbhorgaill daughter of Mac Beatha (or, fully Anglicized, Dervorgilla daughter of Macbeth)

Spelling And Pronunciation

The exact spelling and pronunciation of given names, <inghean>, <mac>, <mhic>, <Ó>, and <Uí> depend on precise period and location. The spelling and pronunciation of the father's name, grandfather's name, and, in Irish clan affiliation bynames, the clan ancestor's name, are also affected by grammatical changes (namely, they must be put in the genitive case and sometimes lenited).

Genitive case forms of various men's given names can be found in some of the articles and books listed in Sources for Gaelic Names (though keep in mind that the forms given in these articles are usually for a specific time period, and may not be appropriate for another period). The article The Spelling of Lenited Consonants in Gaelic explains the effect of lenition on Gaelic spelling.

But in most cases it will still be necessary to consult someone who is knowledgeable about medieval Gaelic and medieval Gaelic naming practices in order to determine the exact spelling and pronunciation appropriate for an individual's given name and byname in the chosen century and location. Such knowledgeable people can be found at The Academy of Saint Gabriel. For your convenience, there is a form letter that can be used to make a basic Gaelic name request to S. Gabriel.

The following table gives the normalized standard spellings of the patronymic particles. (Note that this is a generalization and does not include all spellings known to have been used before 1600.)

English Case Before roughly

1200 AD After roughly

1200 AD daughter nominative ingen inghean son nominative mac mac of son

(lenited) genitive

(lenited) meic mhic male descendent

(Irish only) nominative Ua Ó of male descendent

(Irish only) genitive Uí Uí

Documentary Forms

In Ireland and especially in Scotland, most documents were not actually written in Gaelic. For most of the Middle Ages, most documents where individual real people are named were written in Latin. In the later Middle Ages, many documents in Scotland were written in Scots (a cousin language of English) and many documents in Ireland were written in English.3 Because medieval writers used to transform, to varying degrees, names & bynames to suit the language in which they were writing, the way the name of a Gael would appear in most documents was often quite different from how it would have appeared in a document written in the Gaelic language. You may want to use such a documentary form of the individual's name & byname when writing (or, in the SCA, when registering the name). The Academy of S. Gabriel can also help you determine likely documentary forms for the chosen name & byname for the appropriate century and location.

Sources For Gaelic Names

In addition to printed sources, there is a growing list of internet sources for Gaelic given names at both The Medieval Names Archive and Scottish Names Resources. The most useful of the printed and Internet sources for Scottish and Irish Gaelic names include:

Glossary

Byname

A byname is an additional name used with a person's given name (first name) to distinguish exactly which person with that given name they are. (So a modern fixed, inherited surname is a type of byname.) A personal byname is a byname that pertains to and describes that specific individual for whom it is used -- for example, by describing their appearance or which individual was their father, etc.. For example, in the name "Donnchadh mac Fearchair", "mac Fearchair" is a personal byname that distinguishes this Donnchadh from other men named Donnchadh by indicating that this Donnchadh's father was named Fearchar.

Eponymous

Eponymous refers to the person after whom something is named. For example, Robert's eponymous uncle would be his Uncle Robert, after whom he was named, and the eponymous founders of Hewlett-Packard would be Mr. Hewlett and Mr. Packard, after whom the company was named. Similarly, the eponymous clan ancestor of an Ó Conchobhair would be the Conchobhar after whom the clan was named.

Genitive Case

The genitive case shows possession. It involves certain changes in spelling and pronunciation which have a similar effect in Gaelic as changing John to John's has in English. Genitive case forms of various Gaelic men's given names can be found in some of the articles and books listed in Sources for Gaelic Names (though keep in mind that the forms given in these articles are usually for a specific time period, and may not be appropriate for another period).

Lenited/Lenition

Grammatical lenition involves a "softening" of the initial consonant sounds of words in certain grammatical situations. This pronunciation change in Gaelic is sometimes indicated by a changed spelling as well. See The Spelling of Lenited Consonants in Gaelic(i) for information on the effect of lenition on spelling. (Vowels cannot be lenited.) A word that is changed in this way is said to be lenited.

Metronymic or Matronymic

A metronymic or matronymic is a name formed from an individual's mother's name.

Patronymic

A patronymic is a name formed from an individual's father's name. Note that a name formed from an individual's mother's name is not a patronymic, but rather a metronymic.

Notes

1 These are the names of two of the children of modern rock star Frank Zappa. Even in the late 20th century, when our unconscious naming rules accept (though perhaps with a raised eyebrow) names such as "Rainbow", "River", and "Shaquiel", our reaction to "Moon Unit" and "Dweezil" demonstrates that even today, in our own culture, any random word or combination of sounds are not considered well formed names. And in the Middle Ages there were no rock stars... 2 Thomas is the English form of a name derived from an Aramaic word meaning 'twin'. [Withycombe, s.n. "Thomas"] 3 There are many terms, some more respected than others, used for the modern Scots language and/or specific dialects of Modern Scots, including "Broad Scots", "Lallans", "Lowland Scots", "Aberdonian", "Doric", "Glaswegian", and many others. In the 14th and 15th centuries, Scots speakers themselves called their language "Inglis", while in the 16th century they took to calling it "Scottis". Some linguists consider Scots to be a separate language from English, others consider it a dialect of English. Since the categorization of independent language vs. dialect is a subjective one, there is no "one true answer". I choose to refer to Scots as a language for several reasons, including that I find it makes it easier to talk about and explain the linguistic situation in both modern and medieval Scotland. Note that "Scots" has several other, more common, meanings in addition to referring to the Scots language, including, as an adjective, the meaning "Scottish" and, as a noun, the meaning "more than one Scottish person".

Bibliography

Black, George F. The Surnames of Scotland: Their Origin, Meaning, and History . Edinburgh: Birlinn, 1993. Original edition, The New York Public Library, 1946. NYPublic Library 1999 hardback at Amazon.com - Birlinn 1996 hardback at Amazon.co.uk CELT Corpus of Electronic Texts [WWW]. University College Cork, [cited 2000]. Available from http://www.ucc.ie/celt/. Jones, Heather Rose. "Feminine Names from the Index to O'Brien's Corpus Genealogiarum Hiberniae" (2nd edition) [WWW]. Medieval Names Archive, 2 Dec 1999 [cited 2000]. Available from http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/tangwystyl/obrien/. Jones, Heather Rose. "100 Most Popular Men's Names in Early Medieval Ireland" [WWW]. Medieval Names Archive, 1998 [cited 2000]. Available from http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/tangwystyl/irish100/. Krossa, Sharon L. "A Simple Guide to Constructing 12th Century Scottish Gaelic Names" [WWW]. Medieval Scotland, 18 Jun 1997 [cited 14 Aug 2000]. Available from http://MedievalScotland.org/scotnames/simplescotgaelicnames12.shtml. MacLysaght, Edward. The Surnames of Ireland. New York: Barnes & Noble Inc., 1969. Mittleman, Josh [ska Arval Benicouer]. "Some Scottish Gaelic Feminine Names" [WWW]. Medieval Names Archive, 9 Jun 2000 [cited 2000]. Available from http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/arval/scotgaelfem/. O'Brien, Kathleen M. [ska Mari Elspeth nic Bryan]. "Dated Names Found in Ó Corráin & Maguire's Irish Names" (Version 2.4) [WWW]. Medieval Names Archive, 20 Jul 1999 [cited 2000]. Available from http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/ocm/. O'Brien, Kathleen M. [ska Mari Elspeth nic Bryan]. "Names in the Annals of Connacht: 1224-1544" (Version 1.2) [WWW]. Medieval Names Archive, 9 Mar 2000 [cited 2000]. Available from http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsConnacht/. OCM Ó Corráin, Donnchadh, and Fidelma Maguire, Irish Names, 2nd ed. Dublin: The Lilliput Press, 1990. [Another edition has the title Gaelic Names.] Reaney Reaney, P.H., and R.M. Wilson. A Dictionary of British Surnames. 2nd ed. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1976. Thurneysen Withycombe Withycombe, E. G. The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names. 2nd ed. Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1950. Woulfe Woulfe, Patrick, Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish Names and Surnames. Dublin: M. H. Gill & Son, Ltd, 1923.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the members of The Academy of Saint Gabriel for their assistance with the preparation of this article, especially Brian M. Scott, Heather Rose Jones, Josh Mittleman, and Brian Speer. Any errors are my own and despite their best efforts!

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