Desmond (name)

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Desmond
Gendermale
Origin
Word/nameanglicized Irish
Region of originEnglish-speaking world

Desmond is a given name and a surname, derived from the Irish place-name Desmond, an anglicization of the Irish Deas-Mhumhna ("South Munster"). [1] The Irish peerages of Ormonde, Desmond, and Thomond represented the old sub-kingdoms of East, South, and North Munster, respectively. [2] South Munster existed as an independent territory between 1118 and 1543. The title of Earl of Desmond (fourth creation) in the Peerage of Ireland originates in 1628; it is currently held by Alexander Feilding, 12th Earl of Denbigh (born 1970).

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Notable people with the given name

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Notable people with the surname

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References

  1. Teresa Norman, A World of Baby Names (2003), p. 100.
  2. Isaac Taylor, Names and their histories, alphabetically arranged as a handbook of historical geography and topographical nomenclature (1896), p. 199.