 Orr coat of arms | |
| Origin | |
|---|---|
| Language(s) | Scottish Gaelic |
| Region of origin | Scotland (Argyll, Renfrew, etc.) |
| Frequency Comparisons [1] | |
Orr is a surname of Scottish and Ulster-Scots origin. It is derived from the Gaelic Odhar meaning "dark, pale". In Scotland, Orr may be a sept of Clan Campbell.
The primary origin is from the Gaelic odhar, meaning "dark", "dun". [2] Padraig Mac Giolla Domhnaigh, suggested that the Irish surname originates from an Anglicisation of Gaelic Mac Iomhaire. Mac Giolla Domhnaigh stated that this was an old name from Renfrewshire, and a sept of the Campbells; he stated that the name was earlier spelt Mac Ure. [3]
In Ireland the name is common particularly in Ulster, and mainly found in County Antrim, County Down, County Londonderry and County Tyrone. The first recorded evidence of the name in Ulster is of those who came from Scotland with Sir Hugh Montgomery in 1606 to settle in North Down on lands ceded by the O'Neill family. They were chiefly Presbyterian, with some Episcopalians, and a few Roman Catholics and Quakers. According to Bell, the earliest record of the name in Ireland is that of a family in County Tyrone in 1655. [4] However, according to Orr, the earliest record of the name in Ireland is of Richard Orr of Clontarf in 1563. [5]
In Scotland, the name is first known to have been recorded in Renfrewshire. Historian Edward MacLysaght suggests that the name in Scotland derives from the parish of Urr in Kirkcudbrightshire. Indeed, the River Urr flowed through the area. A tradition of some of the Orrs in Northern Ireland has it that they were descended from outlawed brothers whose original family name was McLean; they crossed this river and then made their way by boat to Donaghadee in County Down in the early 17th century. Having escaped persecution, they took river's name as their surname and settled in Newtownards. [6]
by Iain Banks
Fitzpatrick is an Irish surname that most commonly arose as an anglicised version of the Irish patronymic surname Mac Giolla Phádraig "Son of the Devotee of (St.) Patrick".
The surname McAleer is found in County Tyrone, Ulster in Ireland, moving into western regions of Scotland. It is an Anglicisation of the Gaelic Mac Giolla Uidhir or Mac Giolla Uír. It is thought to mean "son of the servant of Saint Odhar". Legend says that Saint Odhar was Saint Patrick's charioteer.
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.
McCullough is an Irish surname, with two distinct Gaelic origins:
Curry is a common surname used in Ireland, Scotland and England. Currey is a less common variant. In England and Scotland, is it thought to derive from local place names and, in Scotland, also possibly from MacMhuirrich.
McGowan is an Irish and Scottish surname. It is an Anglicization of the Irish Mac Gabhann and Scottish Mac Gobhann, both of which mean 'son of (the) smith'. Belonging to the Uí Echach Cobo, located in modern-day western County Down, Ulster, they were of the same stock as the McGuinness clan.
McQuillan and MacQuillan are surnames of Irish origin. There are several unrelated origins of the surnames McQuillan and MacQuillan.
Fergus or Feargus is a common and one of the oldest known Scottish or Irish male given name derived from Old Irish, meaning "the strong (one)" or "the masculine (one)".
Gilmore and Gillmore are surnames with several origins and meanings.
McElwain or McElwaine is a surname of Gaelic origin. It can be derived from either Scottish or Irish. The Scottish translation being the anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Gille Bheathain, meaning ‘son of the servant of (Saint) Beathan’ and also a personal name representing a diminutive of beatha ‘life’. The Irish form being the anglicised form of Gaelic Mac Giolla Bháin, meaning ‘son of the white-haired lad’. In Ulster this surname can be derived to be the Scottish form as opposed to the Irish form which would be more common in the Republic of Ireland. Another anglicised version of the Irish "Mac Giolla Bháin" is the surname Kilbane.
Lavery, also spelled Lowry, Lowrie, Lory, Lavoy and Lowery, is an Irish surname derived from the Gaelic Ó Labhradha, meaning the "descendants of Labhradha".
Morrow is an anglicized surname of Irish or Scottish origins.
Donlevy is an Irish surname derived from the Gaelic Mac Duinnshléibhe/Ó Duinnshléibhe 'son/descendant of Donn Sléibhe'; a given name meaning 'Donn of the mountain', i.e. 'dark mountain'. The MacDonlevys were the hereditary rulers of Dál Fiatach and styled as the Kings of Ulaid, i.e. rulers of (east) Ulster, in present-day County Down.
The McPhillips surname may be of Scottish or Irish origin, the surname is found predominantly in Ireland, in Cavan, Fermanagh and Monaghan counties. It is usually derived from the common surname Phillips.
Drennan is a surname of Irish origin. Variations of the name are found primarily in Ireland, Scotland, and the United States. The surname is purportedly derived from the Gaelic Ó Droighneáin, Ó Draighnáin, or Ua Draighnen, meaning "descendant of Draighnen", or "descendant of blackthorn". Variant spellings include Drennen, Drenning, Drennon, Drinan, Drinnan, Drinnon, and Drynan. Thornton is another Anglicized surname from the same original Gaelic form.
Murchadh is masculine given name of Irish origin, used in the Irish and Scottish Gaelic languages.
Caulfield is a surname of several separate origins. It may occasionally be of English origin, but in Ireland is often a simplified form of a number of Gaelic surnames, including Mac Cathmhaoil, an Ulster family traditionally descended from Niall of the Nine Hostages. It is also known to be an anglicized form of Ó Gamhna and Ó Gamhnáin. A variant Caulfeild, were an Anglo-Irish family. Notable people with this surname include:
McCusker is a surname of Gaelic origin used predominantly in Ulster. Often interchangeable with Cosgrove, which was more common in parts of Armagh and in Cavan and Longford.
The Maguire family is an Irish clan based in County Fermanagh. The name derives from the Gaelic Mac Uidhir, which is "son of Odhar" meaning "dun", "dark one". According to legend, this relates to the eleventh descendant of Colla da Chrich, great-grandson of Cormac mac Airt, who was monarch of Ireland about the middle of the third century. From the 13th to the 17th centuries, the Maguire family were kings of Fermanagh.
Gillespie is both a masculine given name and a surname in the English language. Variants include Gillaspie and Gillispie.