Your Name in Irish?

Kintarō Hattori

I remember when in primary school we reguarly had to use the Irish version of our name but that's a long time ago now and I can't remember what mine is. Is there a site somewhere that can tell you what your name in Irish is?

Many thanks for any and all replies.

Krusader

We could translate it if you want, otherwise try this
http://www.dochara.com/the-irish/surnames/irish-surnames-e-g/

Test For Echo

Or try this http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/

Kintarō Hattori

I had a look at the first link there which didn't feature the family name, the second did and it's Mac Giolla Chomhgaill (Coyle). I had found this earlier on HouseofNames.com but I don't remember the surname being as long as that in school. As my first name is Liam my colleagues mentioned that there was no Irish translation of that as it is Irish but I seem to remember having a different name in school- though that could just be a hazy memory as it's so long ago.

deise go deo

Kintarō Hattori wrote: »

I had a look at the first link there which didn't feature the family name, the second did and it's Mac Giolla Chomhgaill (Coyle). I had found this earlier on HouseofNames.com but I don't remember the surname being as long as that in school. As my first name is Liam my colleagues mentioned that there was no Irish translation of that as it is Irish but I seem to remember having a different name in school- though that could just be a hazy memory as it's so long ago.

Its unlikly that you had a different first name, there isent a translation for Liam as it is an Irish name. You could always just ring your old primary school and ask what it was.

Kintarō Hattori

deise go deo wrote: »

Its unlikly that you had a different first name, there isent a translation for Liam as it is an Irish name. You could always just ring your old primary school and ask what it was.

Well like I said, my memory is hazy as it was a long time ago. Would there be a different version of Mac Giolla Chomhgaill though?

Krusader

I knew a Coyle native speaker from donegal, also he spelt his name

Mac Giolla Chomhaill ( without the g )



EDIT:
Remember that your daughter would be
Nic Giolla Chomhaill

and your wife
Mhic Giolla Chomhaill

An gal gréine

Liam Mac Giolla Chomhaill, as mentioned already, would be the accepted standard for many a long year. A book I have dating from 1906, by Pádraig de Bhulbh, has Liam/Uilliam Mac Giollachaoil and Liam/Uilliam MacGiolla Choille.

craoltoir

Some people also use Mac Giolla Chóill

dubhthach

My surname is spelt Ó Dubhthaigh however I recall the teachers decided to be innovative at one stage and spell it as Ó Dufaigh (new-fangled spelling), I only found this out when looking at roll book one day. I use to wonder how the anglicisation Duffy came about. It would seem that bhth cluster was pronunced as a f in dialects in central connacht/south ulster (Roscommon/Cavan/Monaghan) which tie in nicely with points of origins of two Duffy septs. Other angliscations included Doohey/Duhig in Munster and Dowey in donegal all dependent on local pronunciation.

Personally I like using the punc so i get: Ó Duḃṫaiġ

Anyways my sister who is a primary school teacher tells me that they tend to use McLysaght's book on Irish families to look up Irish version of names. Great book anyways.

An Riabhach

Also,remember that schoolteachers are not always correct when it comes to Irish names and surnames.I myself am a prime example of this.

Every morning in primary school,the principal would do the roll call in Irish.My name is Jason Ray.The principal would call me "Jason Ó Ré" in Irish.But,as I know now,this was a false and horribly incorrect Irish name.But when I gave this name to the teachers in secondary school,they didn't have any arguments about "Ó Ré",and they told me that "there is no Irish for 'Jason'".But after doing my own research on websites,writing emails,letters and reading books,I found that 'Jason' has 3 Irish versions-Séasán,Iasan and Iasón.And I also found that "Ó Riabhaigh" is the correct Irish for the surname "Ray".When I mentioned this to my mother,to my surprise,she already knew of the name "Ó Riabhaigh".She just presumed that "Ó Ré" was a shortened modernized version which was being used when she saw it written on my copybooks.

An Riabhach

(continued from my last post)

Tis just a pity that I didn't ask me Ma for a second opinion,but back then I was way too young to know any different,and my thinking was that the teacher couldn't possibly be wrong.

But there you have it.

If I could go back to school today,it would be to do just one thing; to say out loudly....

"A MHÚINTEOIRÍ,SÉASÁN Ó RIABHAIGH IS AINM DOM!!"