Surnames you only see in certain places in Ireland

francis1978 · 25-09-2015 03:01PM

Worked with a guy from Mayo once called Bilbo, apparently it's Spanish in its origin from the Bilbao area but over time it became Bilbo.

ciarang85 · 25-09-2015 03:06PM

O'Dovovan don't think iv'e ever met one from outside cork, i'm there's loads tho:)

For Forks Sake · 25-09-2015 03:09PM

ciarang85 wrote: »

O'Dovovan don't think iv'e ever met one from outside cork, i'm there's loads tho:)

All of Cork (apart from the bits out west full of hippies and/or retired british folk) can be covered by about half a dozen surnames.

Bulbous Salutation · 25-09-2015 03:11PM

2ndcoming wrote: »

Faherty - (West) Galway

No harm. Any Faherty I've met has been a complete halfwit.

Joe prim · 25-09-2015 03:13PM

dandyelevan wrote: »

Lots of people named Rabbitte, Fox and Byrd here in the midlands. Got some Reamsbottoms hereabouts too, but they call themselves Reams.

Didn't the Rabbittes tend to intermarry with the Hutches?

dandyelevan · 25-09-2015 03:17PM

Joe prim wrote: »

Didn't the Rabbittes tend to intermarry with the Hutches?

Naw, they only went go to the Gym together, but sadly...things didn't work-out.

25-09-2015 03:19PM

McCluggage in Antrim

diomed · 25-09-2015 03:21PM

McHale, Mayo, and big around Westport.

diomed · 25-09-2015 03:22PM

Kilcawley, Sligo

topper75 · 25-09-2015 03:56PM

bmwguy wrote: »

I had to meet a friend called Tom O Shea in a pub in Kerry once. I was early and I got chatting to the barman, it was Toms local so I asked the barman if he knew him. He said "how many people do you think are in this pub now?"

I looked around and guessed maybe 30-40 people. He said "you wouldn't be far off with that guess, but I can see at least 6 Tom O Sheas in here at the minute and know a good few more"

Wouldn't you just love a walk around inside their heads for five minutes?!

I mean - how does it go?

Mr. O'Shea "What'll we call him?"

Mrs. O'Shea "Thomas. We'll call him Thomas."

Mr. O'Shea "That is a grand idea. Thomas it is. Let's ignore the thousands of other choices and name him the same as a dozen other people in our village."

Strange amount of O'Hallorans in Limerick city, and Minogues in NE Clare. All the Rossiters I ever knew were Wexford.

Snickers Man · 25-09-2015 04:25PM

annapr wrote: »

Inishowen?

Well that's just Derry's green belt.

Samsgirl · 25-09-2015 04:30PM

I have done some genealogy queries for library customers. You get a good idea of where to start looking once you hear the surname. Walsh (e) / Welsh is very common in Waterford.

One customer got v annoyed when we found it v hard to find a John Power born somewhere in Waterford, between 1840 and 1860. Oh the fun with that one......

DEFTLEFTHAND · 25-09-2015 04:32PM

Coonerty in Tipperary.

Snickers Man · 25-09-2015 04:33PM

francis1978 wrote: »

Worked with a guy from Mayo once called Bilbo, apparently it's Spanish in its origin from the Bilbao area but over time it became Bilbo.

I think that's the Middle Earth spelling. it's spelled Bilbow in Mayo.

There's a name Stakelum which you hear around Tipperary with a similar etymology. Apparently it's a corruption of Stockholm. Was there a Swedish Armada ever?

Fearanpoist · 25-09-2015 04:36PM

Listen guys, youse have only scratched the surface with this name business. Where there is an abundance of folk with the same surname, not to mention the possibility of having the same Christian name, the usual method to distinguish members and descendants of the same name was to refer to them by the family nickname e.g. "The Ryan Whip" (I will have to leave that nickname to others more expert than I to explain).

Thus there was little difficulty in distinguishing folk of the same name in counties / areas where they were particularly prevalent!

Muahahaha · 25-09-2015 04:36PM

I've only ever known Shaughnessy's to come from Tipp but perhaps they're more widespread? I think Ryan is a Limerick/Tipp thing but they are spread far and wide these days. Same with Fox but there seems less of those about than Ryans

Laurel_Patente · 25-09-2015 04:39PM

Reynolds is very common in South Leitrim / North Longford.

Cox, Fee, McGloin, and Holahan are common to Leitrim too.

Campbell, Prunty, and Masterson are very common (in every sense) Longford names.

DEFTLEFTHAND · 25-09-2015 04:40PM

Muahahaha wrote: »

I've only ever known Shaughnessy's to come from Tipp but perhaps they're more widespread? I think Ryan is a Limerick/Tipp thing but they are spread far and wide these days. Same with Fox but there seems less of those about than Ryans

Shaughnessy is common enough in Limerick also. Ryan and Maher are two very common Tipp ones.

Snickers Man · 25-09-2015 04:45PM

Laurel_Patente wrote: »

Reynolds is very common in South Leitrim / North Longford.

Cox, Fee, McGloin, and Holahan are common to Leitrim too.

Campbell, Prunty, and Masterson are very common (in every sense) Longford names.

You'd think more Prunty's would change the spelling to that of their most famous namesakes: the Brṏnte sisters.

Apparently their dad was plain old Mr Prunty.

blackbird 49 · 25-09-2015 04:48PM

Mackle, Co Antrim
McAleer, Co Tyrone, don't know how many around the rest of the country

sligojoek · 25-09-2015 05:48PM

The Ryan nickname thing is big around the Nenagh Toomevara Silvermines Dolla area.
Ryan Blacks. Ryan Clevers. Ryan Helpers (because their ancestors helped the brits bring guns to the top of a mountain) Ryan Boolas.

North Sligo is full of Watters, Feeneys, Gillans, McGowans, McSharrys.

I knew a lad from Monegal called James Ramsbotham. He hated his name so much that when he was 18 he had it changed to................

Mike Ramsbotham

garrixfan · 25-09-2015 05:51PM

I know like 3 separate 'Petits' and they have no recent French connections that they know of.

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000 · 25-09-2015 05:59PM

Mesrine65 wrote: »

Tipperary - McGough

Never heard of one. Ever.

McDonagh in Galway.

Red Kev · 25-09-2015 06:06PM

Beirne is north Roscommon.

Gacquin, south Roscommon

Tiddlypeeps wrote: »

I never heard the name Ramsbottom till I moved to Laois, it's an extremely common surname there tho. To this day I still don't think I've met a Ramsbottom outside of Laois.

Lots of RamsBottoms in Roscommon. And very nice they are too.

Snickers Man wrote: »

I think that's the Middle Earth spelling. it's spelled Bilbow in Mayo.

There's a name Stakelum which you hear around Tipperary with a similar etymology. Apparently it's a corruption of Stockholm. Was there a Swedish Armada ever?

Vikings were a Swedish Armada.

Tarzana2 · 25-09-2015 06:25PM

Masterson on Achill Island. Staunton in Castlebar, Jordan, Lyons and Morley in East Mayo.

Nidgeweasel · 25-09-2015 06:27PM

martyos121 wrote: »

exclusive to Mayo, but you can't walk more than a few meters without going past a Miserable b@stard.

Edited for you.

wakka12 · 25-09-2015 06:29PM

Snickers Man wrote: »

Seriously though, the 1901 and 1911 censuses are great for finding out what part of the country certain names are most likely to hail from.

If you're called Argue you're most likely from Cavan-Roscommon-Sligo way.
If you're called Ferry you're from Donegal-Derry. Almost for certain.
Ditto if you're called Doherty.
If you're called Trant, you're from Kerry.

Of course this really only applies to less common surnames. Common ones tend to be found all over the place and especially in the big cities. We are a nation of migrants after all.

Thats funny, two people in my class are from Donegal with the surname Ferry

LordSutch · 25-09-2015 06:30PM

Lots of people by the name of Kingston in county Cork.

I think they stttled there after arriving from England in the 1600s

Reiver · 25-09-2015 06:32PM

Achill Island is controlled by the Lavelles. Was there this summer and thought he was some rich ****er who was king of the island with Lavelle's supermarket/garage/hotel/bar/restaurant/mechanic all over the place. Got chatting to a local who shed some illumination that it's merely a very common name.

Southern half of Kerry is thronged with O'Sullivans.

Norman names just seem to be scattered loosely about. Fitzgerald and Fitzgibbon seem to be everywhere.

sligojoek · 25-09-2015 06:36PM

Red Kev wrote: »

Beirne is north Roscommon.

Gacquin, south Roscommon

Lots of RamsBottoms in Roscommon. And very nice they are too.

Vikings were a Swedish Armada.

All the rams have lovely bottoms.

Surnames you only see in certain places in Ireland

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