Irish Name Generator
Irish given names and O/Mac surnames built from genuine Gaelic elements, each fragment shown with its attested meaning.
1,728,000 combinations in this form
- Aenin Ni Congal
Aen one + in little
one little
Ni Con daughter of hound + gal valorous
daughter of hound, the valorous
- Lasarcarn O'Artlia
Lasar flame + carn cairn
flame cairn
O'Art descendant of bear + lia grey
descendant of bear, the grey
- Muckcora Mac Caelbeg
Muck pig + cora weir
pig weir
Mac Cael son of slender + beg small
son of slender, the small
- Glaslia Nic Muirgarv
Glas green + lia grey
green grey
Nic Muir daughter of sea + garv rough
daughter of sea, the rough
- Savgal Nic Muirall
Sav sweet + gal valour
sweet valour
Nic Muir daughter of sea + all mighty
daughter of sea, the mighty
- Ballygorm O'Cathcam
Bally homestead + gorm blue
homestead blue
O'Cath descendant of battle + cam crooked
descendant of battle, the crooked
- Osboy Mac Maelbeg
Os deer + boy yellow
deer yellow
Mac Mael son of devotee + beg small
son of devotee, the small
- Maevfeena Ni Congarv
Maev intoxicating + feena wine
intoxicating wine
Ni Con daughter of hound + garv rough
daughter of hound, the rough
- Gortlann O'Artderg
Gort tilled field + lann enclosure
tilled field enclosure
O'Art descendant of bear + derg crimson
descendant of bear, the crimson
- Cianlaidir O'Flannog
Cian ancient + laidir sturdy
ancient sturdy
O'Flann descendant of red + og young
descendant of red, the young
- Fingeal O'Cathlaidir
Fin fair + geal bright
fair bright
O'Cath descendant of battle + laidir sturdy
descendant of battle, the sturdy
- Inishlann O'Ciarderg
Inish island + lann enclosure
island enclosure
O'Ciar descendant of dark + derg crimson
descendant of dark, the crimson
- Ronfada Nic Donnmoyle
Ron seal + fada long
seal long
Nic Donn daughter of brown + moyle bald
daughter of brown, the bald
- Sarderg Mac Maelfada
Sar excellent + derg crimson
excellent crimson
Mac Mael son of devotee + fada long
son of devotee, the long
- Bungar Mac Donnfada
Bun base + gar short
base short
Mac Donn son of brown + fada long
son of brown, the long
- Brenlay O'Faellaidir
Bren prince + lay hero
prince hero
O'Fael descendant of wolf + laidir sturdy
descendant of wolf, the sturdy
- Slanbar Nic Donngal
Slan health + bar head
health head
Nic Donn daughter of brown + gal valorous
daughter of brown, the valorous
- Pollderg Mac Nialaidir
Poll hollow + derg crimson
hollow crimson
Mac Nia son of champion + laidir sturdy
son of champion, the sturdy
- Kenvinn Ni Conkeen
Ken chief + vinn melodious
chief melodious
Ni Con daughter of hound + keen smooth
daughter of hound, the smooth
- Gealmoyle Ni Finower
Geal shining + moyle bald
shining bald
Ni Fin daughter of fair + ower sallow
daughter of fair, the sallow
- Aghlann Nic Aedroe
Agh field + lann enclosure
field enclosure
Nic Aed daughter of fire + roe russet
daughter of fire, the russet
- Osur O'Brankertach
Os deer + ur fresh
deer fresh
O'Bran descendant of raven + kertach skilled
descendant of raven, the skilled
- Slangal O'Flannroe
Slan health + gal valour
health valour
O'Flann descendant of red + roe russet
descendant of red, the russet
- Corrkeel Mac Osmor
Corr round hill + keel narrow
round hill narrow
Mac Os son of deer + mor great
son of deer, the great
How Irish names are built
¶Older Irish given names are compounds of two real words, and the halves still carry their meanings. Donn brown plus cath battle gives Donnchadh, anglicised Donough or Duncan. Fionn fair plus barr head gives Fionnbharr, now Finbar. Gorm blue plus flaith sovereignty gives Gormlaith. Add the diminutive endings and the pattern widens again: an and in mean little, so Ciaran is the little dark one and Ronan the little seal, from ron, a seal.
The surname system is patronymic and older than English influence. O means descendant of and Mac means son of, so O Conaill is the descendant of Conall and Mac Domhnaill the son of Domhnall. Women take the feminine forms: Ni for an O surname and Nic for a Mac surname, which is why a brother and sister are O Briain and Ni Bhriain. The particle is followed by the ancestor's name in the genitive, which changes its opening sound.
Anglicisation reshaped the spellings rather than the names. Dubh, meaning black, is written Duff, Dow or Dove depending on the scribe; Sean becomes Shane; Ruadh, red, becomes Roe or Roy; the smith name Mac Gabhann came out as McGowan in one county and as plain Smith in the next. This generator uses the anglicised spellings because they are the ones people meet, and gives the Irish word behind each one.
Questions
What are common Irish surnames?
Murphy, Kelly, O'Sullivan, Walsh, O'Brien, Byrne, Ryan, O'Connor, O'Neill and McCarthy head most lists. Nearly all began as a patronymic: Murphy is Ó Murchadha, descendant of Murchadh, sea-warrior; O'Sullivan is Ó Súilleabháin, descendant of the dark-eyed one; Byrne is Ó Broin, descendant of Bran, meaning raven.
What does the O' in Irish names mean?
It is Irish ó, earlier ua, meaning grandson or descendant. Ó Néill is the descendant of Niall, not Niall's own son. Mac means son of, so it marks one generation rather than a line. The apostrophe is an English printer's habit; in Irish the particle stands as a separate word with a space after it.
Is Mac Irish or Scottish?
Both. Mac is the ordinary Gaelic word for son and it is used across Ireland and Gaelic-speaking Scotland, because the two share a language ancestor. Mc is not a Scottish variant, only a shortening of Mac used by writers in both countries. The Ó prefix, by contrast, is almost entirely Irish.
What is the difference between Ó and Ní in a name?
They mark gender. A man is Ó Dónaill, descendant of Dónall; his sister is Ní Dhónaill. The Mac pair works the same way, with Mac for a son and Nic for a daughter. Irish surnames never took the husband's form automatically, so a married woman keeps her own Ní or Nic name in Irish usage.
Are these real Irish names?
The elements are. Every fragment here is a genuine Irish word or name element given with its standard meaning, in the anglicised spelling most readers will recognise. Many combinations are attested names such as Donnchadh, Ciarán and Fionnbharr; others are new but legal pairings built from the same stock of words.