Neil

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Neil is a masculine name of Irish origin. The name is an anglicisation of the Irish Niall which is of disputed derivation. The Irish name may be derived from words meaning "cloud", "passionate", "victory", "honour" or "champion". [1] As a surname, Neil is traced back to Niall of the Nine Hostages who was an Irish king and eponymous ancestor of the Uí Néill and MacNeil kindred. Most authorities cite the meaning of Neil in the context of a surname as meaning "champion".

Contents

Origins

The Gaelic name was adopted by the Vikings and taken to Iceland as Njáll (see Nigel). From Iceland it went via Norway, Denmark, and Normandy to England. [2] The name also entered Northern England and Yorkshire directly from Ireland, and from Norwegian settlers. Neal or Neall is the Middle English form of Nigel.

As a first name, during the Middle Ages, the Gaelic name of Irish origins was popular in Ireland and later Scotland. During the 20th century Neil began to be used in England and North America, and grew in popularity throughout the English-speaking world; however, in England, it has recently been eclipsed by the Gaelic form. [1]

The surname Neil is a reduced form of the surname McNeil (from the Gaelic Mac Néill, "son of Niall"), or variant form the surname of Neill (from the Irish Ó Néill and Mac Néill or the Scottish Gaelic Mac Néill, meaning "descendant of Niall" and "son of Niall". [3] [4] [5]

The name passed from Ireland to Scotland where it had the Mc/Mac prefix a prefix that already existed in the Irish surname such as Lóegaire mac Néill. Some Scottish McNeill's returned to Ireland in the 14th century and are associated with MacNeill, MacGreal, MacReill, and Mag Reil surnames. [6]

The Manx version of the name is Kneal (1598), Kneale (1655), or Kneel (1636). It evolved from McNelle (1408) and MacNeyll (1430) becoming Kneal by 1598. [7]

Variants

Variants of the given name include Neale and Neal. [1] The table below sets out the various surnames derived from Niall and Nial.

NameYearCountry of originMentioned
MacNele1289Scotland [8]
Neel1170–1182EnglandYork Charters
Neil1260EnglandAssize Rolls, Yorks
Nele1304EnglandSubsidy Rolls, Yorks
Nigelli1195EnglandFeet of Fines, Warwicks
Niel1841ScotlandA frequent spelling variant of Neil in the 1841 Census of Aberdeenshire
Nel, Neel1208–1210EnglandCuria Regis Rolls, Berkshire

Notable people with the given name

People with the surname

Fictional characters

See also

Related Research Articles

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Niall is a male given name of Irish origin. The original meaning of the name is unknown, but popular modern sources have suggested that it means "champion" ,. According to John Ryan, Professor of Early and Medieval History at University College Dublin, Niall "seems to be so ancient that its meaning was lost before records began."

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Neal (Neil) is a given masculine name and surname of the Gaelic origin. The name is an Anglicisation of Niall which is of disputed derivation. The Irish name may be derived from words meaning "cloud", "passionate", "victory", "honour" or "champion". As a surname, Neil is traced back to Niall of the Nine Hostages who was an Irish king and eponymous ancestor of the Uí Néill and MacNeil kindred. Most authorities cite the meaning of Neal in the context of a surname as meaning champion.

MacNeil can have a number of different meanings and spellings:

McCann or MacCan is an Irish surname. It is derived from the Gaelic Mac Cana meaning "son of Cana". The Irish given name Cana literally means "cub", specifically alluding to a "wolf cub". The Mac Cana were a Gaelic Irish clan who held the lands of Clancann and Clanbrassil, together known as Oneilland, in what is now northern County Armagh. The surname is strongly associated with that part of Ulster.

The surname Duff has several origins. In some cases, it is an Anglicised form of the Gaelic Ó Duibh, Mac Giolla Duibh, Mac Duibh. The surname Duff is also sometimes a short form of Duffin, and MacElduff, and Duffy.

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McNeill is a Scottish and Irish surname. The name McNeill is often associated with the islands of Gigha and Colonsay. The name is considered a sub-sept of Clan MacNeill, which is historically associated with the island of Barra in the outer Hebrides. The Irish and Scottish Gaelic patronymic meaning of McNeill is 'Son of Neil'. The annals of ulster claim Lóegaire mac Néill as King of Tara or High King of Ireland. The name Neil or Neill derives from the Irish Niall which is of disputed derivation. The Irish name may be derived from words meaning "cloud", "passionate", "victory", "honour" or "champion" As a surname, Neil is traced back to Niall of the Nine Hostages who was an Irish king and eponymous ancestor of the Uí Néill and MacNeil kindred. Most authorities cite the meaning of Neil in the context of a surname as meaning "champion".

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Neilson is a patronymic surname meaning "son of Neil". The prefix Neil- is of Irish Gaelic origin, a genitive of 'Niall', possibly meaning "Champion" or "Cloud". Neilson, as a surname, is common in English language-speaking countries, but less common as a given name. It can be an anglicisation of MacNeil or the Scandinavian name, Nielsen.

Kneale is a surname of Manx origin. The name is an Anglicisation of the Gaelic Mac Néill, meaning "son of Niall".

MacKechnie and McKechnie are Irish/Scottish surnames. They are Anglicised forms of the Irish/Scottish Gaelic MacEacharna, meaning "son of Eacharn". The Irish/Scottish Gaelic personal name Eacharn is composed of two elements. The first element, each, means "horse"; the second element, tighearna, means "lord". In Scotland, the Scottish Gaelic MacEacharna has usually been Anglicised as McEachern. The surnames MacKechnie and McKechnie can be represented in Scottish Gaelic by MacEachainn, and MacEacharna. The McKechnies are a Sept of the Macdonalds of Clanranald.

Poland is an Irish surname that has been Anglicised from MacPoìlin. Outside of Ireland, it can be of English and German origin.

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Gordon is a masculine given name in the English language. The name is derived from the Scottish surname Gordon. It is uncertain if this surname originated from a place name in Scotland or in France. The Gordon in Berwickshire, where the family who bore the surname held lands in the 12th century, is of uncertain etymology. It is also possible that this place name was named after settlers from France, who were named after a like-named place in Normandy. The surname is thought to have been taken up as a given name in honour of the Major-General Charles George Gordon, a British army officer who was killed in 1885, in Khartoum.

Angus is a masculine given name in English. It is an Anglicised form of the Scottish Gaelic and Irish Aonghas, which is composed of Celtic elements meaning "one" and "choice". A variant spelling of the Scottish Gaelic name is Aonghus. The Irish form of the Scottish Gaelic name is Aengus. A pet form of the given name Angus is Angie, pronounced "an-ghee", which represents the Scottish Gaelic Angaidh. A short form of the given name Angus is Gus, which may be lengthened to Gussie. The feminine form of Angus is Angusina.

Macaulay, McAuley, MacAuley, and Macauley are Scottish and Irish surnames. There are several etymological origins for the names: all of which originated as patronyms in Gaelic languages—Irish and Scottish Gaelic. Although these English-language (Anglicized) forms of the surnames are ultimately derived from Gaelic patronyms, they do not refer to the actual name of the bearer's father. The surname is quite common in Ireland, particularly in Ulster.

McKenna is an Irish surname. It derives from the Gaelic name Cináed, meaning, “born of fire.” It is the anglicized form of the Gaelic Mac Cionaodha meaning "son of Cionnaith", or of the Scottish surname, from Galloway, "MacCionaodha".

References

  1. 1 2 3 Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006), A Dictionary of First Names, Oxford Paperback Reference (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, pp. 203–204, ISBN   978-0-19-861060-1 .
  2. ↑ P H Reaney, A Dictionary of British Surnames, Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1976, London.
  3. ↑ "Neil Name Meaning and History". Ancestry.com . Retrieved August 3, 2009. For the etymology of the surname Neil this web page cites: Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN   0-19-508137-4.
  4. ↑ "Neill Name Meaning and History". Ancestry.com . Retrieved August 3, 2009. For the etymology of the surname Neill this web page cites: Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN   0-19-508137-4.
  5. ↑ "McNeil Name Meaning and History". Ancestry.com . Retrieved August 3, 2009. For the etymology of the surname McNeil this web page cites: Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN   0-19-508137-4.
  6. ↑ Edward MacLysaght, More Irish Family Names, Irish Academic Press, 1996, Dublin
  7. ↑ A W Moore, Manx Names, London 1903
  8. ↑ G F Black, Surnames of Scotland, New York, 1946
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