Irish Surnames
Irish names are used on the island of Ireland as well as elsewhere in the Western World as a result of the Irish diaspora. See also about Irish names.
472 surnames in our directory
Irish
472Ó Ruaidh is an Irish surname with roots extending deep into Gaelic tradition. Its literal meaning is "descendant of Ruadh", where Ruadh is a given name meaning "red" (from Irish and Scottish Gaelic ruadh, "red"). This wa...
Ó Scolaidhe is an Irish surname denoting "descendant of the scholar," originating from the Irish word scholaidhe, meaning "scholar" or "student." This occupational patronymic likely emerged in medieval Ireland, where it...
Ó Seachnasaigh is an Irish surname meaning "descendant of Seachnasach." The personal name Seachnasach possibly means "elusive" in Irish. This surname is primarily anglicized as O'Shaughnessy or Shaughnessy. Etymology and...
Ó Séaghdha is an Irish surname meaning "descendant of Séaghdha." The root name Séaghdha derives from Old Irish Ségdae, likely from ségda meaning "fine, good, favourable, learned." According to Irish legend, Séaghdha was...
Ó Seanáin is an Irish Gaelic surname, derived from the personal name Seanán, a diminutive of Shannon. The name Shannon itself originates from the River Shannon, the longest river in Ireland (called an tSionainn in Irish)...
Ó Seighin is an Irish surname meaning "descendant of Seighin". The personal name Seighin derives from the Old Irish séigene, meaning "small hawk". This patronymic surname follows the classic Irish naming tradition where...
O'Shaughnessy is an Irish surname primarily found in County Galway and County Limerick. It is an Anglicized form of Ó Seachnasaigh, meaning "descendant of Seachnasach." The given name Seachnasach possibly means "elusive"...
O'Shea is an anglicized surname of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic patronymic Ó Séaghdha. It belongs to a group of Irish surnames that preserve the ancient lineage of the Corcu Duibne tribe in County Kerry, an area...
Ó Síoda is an Irish surname meaning "descendant of Síoda." The root Síoda itself is a byname derived from the Irish word for "silk," indicating that the original bearer may have been involved in the silk trade or known f...
Ó Sirideáin is the original Irish Gaelic form of the surname Sheridan. Derived from the Old Irish personal name Sirideán, the name is believed to mean "searcher" or "inquisitor." The prefix Ó indicates "descendant of," s...
Etymology and Irish Roots Ó Sluaghadháin is an Irish Gaelic surname, the original form from which the anglicized Sloan and Sloane derive. It originates from the given name Sluaghadhán, which is a diminutive of the Irish...
Ó Suaird is an Irish surname meaning "descendant of Suart". The personal name Suart is an Irish Gaelic adaptation of the Old Norse name Sigurd (Old Norse Sigurðr), which was brought to Ireland by Viking settlers during t...
Ó Súileabháin is the original Irish Gaelic form of the surname Sullivan. It is a patronymic surname, meaning "descendant of Súileabhán," derived from the given name Súileabhán, which itself comes from the Irish words súi...
O’Sullivan is an Irish surname of considerable historical and cultural weight. It originated as a variant of Sullivan, from the Gaelic Ó Súilleabháin (also Anglicized as O'Sullivan). The prefix Ó indicates “grandson of”...
Ó Tadhgáin is an Irish Gaelic surname denoting "descendant of Tadhgán," a diminutive of the personal name Tadhg. It is a patronymic surname, typical of Irish naming conventions where Ó means "grandson" or "descendant." T...
Ó Taidhg is an Irish Gaelic surname meaning "descendant of Tadhg." It belongs to the class of Irish patronymic surnames formed with the prefix Ó (originally Ua), meaning "grandson" or "descendant." The root name Tadhg de...
Ó Téacháin is an Irish Gaelic surname, the original form of the Anglicized name Teahan. It means "descendant of Téachán," where the personal name Téachán is thought to derive from a word meaning "fugitive" or "one who fl...
Ó Tíghearnaigh is an Irish Gaelic surname, the original form of the anglicized surname Tierney. It represents a contraction of Ó Tighearnaigh, meaning “descendant of Tighearnach”.EtymologyThe personal name Tighearnach de...
O'Toole is an Irish surname that represents the Anglicized form of the native Gaelic Ó Tuathail, meaning "descendant of Túathal". The root Túathal itself derives from Old Irish túath "people, country" and fal "rule", thu...
Ó Treasaigh is an Irish Gaelic surname, originating as a patronymic meaning "descendant of Treasach." The personal name Treasach derives from the Old Irish Tressach, meaning "warlike" or "fierce." This surname is native...
Ó Tuathail is the original Irish Gaelic form of the anglicized surname O'Toole. It means "descendant of Túathal", a personal name that derives from Old Irish túath "people, country" and fal "rule", thus carrying the mean...
Power 1 is an English and Irish surname with origins in Old French. It derives from Poier, a toponymic name for someone who came from the town of Poix in Picardy, France. The name thus belongs to a class of surnames that...
Prunty is an Irish surname dating back to the medieval period. It is derived from the native Gaelic Ó Proinntigh, meaning "descendant of Proinnteach." The given name Proinnteach itself is believed to come from the Irish...
Quickley-2 is a variant of the Irish surname Quigley. The original Quigley is an Anglicized form of the Irish Ó Coigligh, meaning "descendant of Coigleach", a given name derived from the word coigealach meaning "untidy"...
Quigg is an Irish surname derived from the Gaelic Ó Cuaig, meaning "descendant of Cuaig". The personal name Cuaig is of uncertain etymology, though it likely pre-dates the Norman invasion of Ireland. Phonetic anglicizati...
Quigley is a surname of Irish origin, anglicized from the Gaelic Ó Coigligh, meaning "descendant of Coigleach." The personal name Coigleach is derived from the Irish word coigleach, which bluntly translates to "untidy" o...
Quirk is an Irish and Manx surname, primarily a variant of Quirke.EtymologyThe name is an Anglicized form of the original Irish Ó Cuirc, meaning "descendant of Corc". Corc was a personal name derived from the Old Irish w...
Quirke is an Irish surname, primarily found in Ireland and among the Irish diaspora. It is an Anglicized form of the original Gaelic Irish Ó Cuirc, which means "descendant of Corc." The personal name Corc is derived from...
Ready 3 is an Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó Rodagh. This surname originates from the Gaelic patronymic tradition, where the prefix "Ó" denotes "descendant of". The root name Rodach is a given name derived from t...
Reardon is an Irish surname, a variant of the more common Riordan. It originates from the Gaelic Ó Ríordáin, a later form of Ó Ríoghbhardáin, meaning “descendant of Rígbarddán.” The root name Rígbarddán itself means “lit...
Riley 2 is a variant spelling of the Irish surname Reilly, which itself is an Anglicized form of the Gaelic Ó Raghailligh, meaning 'descendant of Raghailleach.' The personal name Raghailleach has an uncertain etymology,...
Rinne is an Irish surname, specifically an Anglicized form of the Gaelic name Ó Rinn. The prefix Ó denotes "descendant of," and the root element Rinn is derived from a personal name meaning "star" in the Irish language....
Ruane is an Irish surname, the Anglicized form of Ó Ruadháin. The original Gaelic name means "descendant of Ruadhán," a personal name derived from the Old Irish Rúadán. This itself is formed from the element rúad ("red")...
Scully is an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Ó Scolaidhe. The original Gaelic name means "descendant of the scholar," derived from Irish scholaidhe (also spelled scolaidhe).Etymology and HistoryThe surname Scully or...
Seward is an Irish surname that originated as an Anglicized form of the Gaelic Ó Suaird. The original Irish name means "descendant of Suart," a personal name derived from the Old Norse Sigurd, which itself comes from the...
Shaughnessy is an Irish surname, the Anglicized form of Ó Seachnasaigh, meaning “descendant of Seachnasach.” The personal name Seachnasach is thought to derive from the Irish word seachnasach, meaning “elusive” or “avoid...
Sheedy is an Irish surname, the Anglicized form of Ó Síoda, meaning "descendant of Síoda," a personal byname derived from the Irish word síoda meaning "silk."Originally written as Ó Síoda in Gaelic, the name was transfor...
Sheehy is an Irish surname, a variant of McSheehy. Both names are anglicized forms of the original Irish Gaelic patronymic Mac Síthigh, meaning "son of Sítheach." The root name Sítheach derives from Old Irish síd, which...
Sheenan is an Irish surname, considered a variant of Shannon. The name Shannon originates from the River Shannon, the longest river in Ireland, known as an tSionainn in Irish. The river is associated with the legendary f...
Shine 2 is an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Ó Seighin. The original Gaelic name means "descendant of Seighin," where the personal name Seighin derives from Old Irish séigene, meaning "small hawk." This type of sur...
Slane is a surname of Irish origin, originally indicating a person from the village of Slane in County Meath, Ireland. The place name Slane is derived from the Irish Baile Shláine, meaning 'town of Sláine mac Dela', refe...
Sowards is a surname with two possible origins, both linked to the Old English or Old Norse name Seward. It is considered a variant of Seward 1 or Seward 3.EtymologyThe name Sowards ultimately derives from the Old Englis...
EtymologyTaggart is a Scottish surname with Irish Gaelic origins, being the Anglicized form of Mac an tSagairt, meaning "son of the priest." The name reflects a period in medieval Celtic society when clerical celibacy wa...
Teague is an Irish surname, being the Anglicized form of the Gaelic Ó Taidhg, meaning "descendant of Tadhg". The original Gaelic name was possibly Ó Taidhg or Mac Thaidhg, both arising from the personal name Tadhg, which...
Teahan is an anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó Téacháin, meaning "descendant of Téachán." The personal name Téachán likely derives from a term meaning "fugitive" in Gaelic, possibly reflecting a historical character...
Toole is an Irish surname, a variant of O'Toole. Both names derive from the Gaelic Ó Tuathail, meaning "descendant of Túathal."EtymologyThe root name Túathal means "ruler of the people," from Old Irish túath "people, cou...
Tracey 2 is an Irish surname, representing an Anglicized form of the native Irish Ó Treasaigh, meaning "descendant of Treasach." The root name Treasach is derived from Old Irish Tressach, which translates to "warlike" or...
Treacy is an Irish surname originating as a variant of Tracey (2), itself an Anglicized form of the Gaelic Ó Treasaigh. This patronymic name means "descendant of Treasach," and the root name Treasach derives from Old Iri...
Vincent 2 is an Irish surname, an anglicized form of the Gaelic Mac Dhuibhinse, meaning 'son of Duibhinse'. The given name Duibhinse translates as 'black island', from the elements dubh ('black') and inis ('island'). Thi...
EtymologyWalsh is a surname of Old English origin, derived from the word wælisc meaning "foreigner, stranger, or Celt." This term was used by the Anglo-Saxons to refer to the native Britons (specifically the Welsh and Co...
Whalen is an Irish surname that represents a variant of the more common Whelan. Both Whalen and Whelan, along with related forms such as Phelan and O'Phelan, are anglicized versions of the Gaelic surname Ó Faoláin, meani...
Whelan is a surname of Irish origin, representing the anglicized form of the Gaelic Ó Faoláin. In Irish, the prefix Ó indicates “descendant of” or “grandson of,” so the name originally meant “descendant of Faolán.”Faolán...