Most Popular Irish Surnames

How many people with this surnames have you met?

1. Murphy – The Sea Battlers

This surname, which means “sea battler,” translates to Gaelic as MacMurchadh (son of Murchadh) and O’Murchadh (descendent of Murchadh), a derivation of the first name of Murchadh or Murragh.

O’Murchadh families lived in Wexford, Roscommon and Cork, in which county it is now most common, with the MacMurchadhs of the Sligo and Tyrone area responsible for most of the Murphys in Ulster.

The name was first anglicized to MacMurphy and then to Murphy in the early 19th century.

2. Kelly – The Bright-Headed Ones

The Kellys are all over Ireland; the name originates from around 10 unrelated ancient clans or septs. These include O’Kelly septs from Meath, Derry, Antrim, Laois, Sligo, Wicklow, Kilkenny, Tipperary, Galway and Roscommon.

O’Kelly comes from the Gaelic O Ceallaigh, meaning “descended from Ceallach,” an Irish chieftan. “Ceallach” means war or contention. It is an ancient first name that is no longer used as a first name in Ireland. However, Kelly is a popular first name for women in the U.S.

3. O’Sullivan – The Hawkeyed Ones

The O’Sullivans or Sullivans are one of the most populous of the Munster families. In Irish, O’Sullivan is O’Suilleabhin, and there is no doubt that origin of the name comes from the word súl (eye), though whether it is to be taken as “one-eyed” or “hawkeyed” is in dispute among scholars.

Originally lords of the territory around Cahir, County Tipperary in the 12th century, they migrated to what is now west Cork and south Kerry, where the name is still very prominent.

4. Walsh – The Welshmen

The name Walsh is one of the most common of the Norman associated names found in Ireland. It seems to have been the name used by the many different groups of Welsh people who arrived in Ireland with the Normans during the 12th century.

The name comes from Welsh, which simply means Welshman, and its early Norman form was “Le Waleys.” But this became gradually anglicized to Walsh.

5. O’Brien – The Noblemen

The name O’Brien, also spelled O’Bryan or O’Brian, translates to Ó Briain in Gaelic, which means “of Brian.” The name indicates descendance from Brian Boru, the celebrated High King of Ireland. This gives O’Briens leave to call themselves “high” and “noble.”

Most O’Briens can be found in counties Clare, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford.

6. Byrne – The Ravens

Byrnes can be found flying around all over Counties Wicklow and Dublin. Byrne, originally O’Byrne, comes from the Gaelic O’Broin meaning “descended from Bran,” an 11th century King of Leinster.

The O’Byrnes were chieftains of what is now County Kildare until the Norman invasion when they were driven from their lands and migrated (ha!) into the mountains of County Wicklow.

7. Ryan – The Little Kings

The meaning of the Irish name Ryan comes from the old Gaelic word “righ” and the old Irish diminutive of “an,” which together form the meaning of “little king.”nThe name Ryan comes from the Irish name O’ Riain – a contraction of the older Irish form O’Mulriain, which is now virtually extinct.

Ryan is also an extremely popular first name, especially in Britain and the U.S.

8. O’Connor – Patrons of Warriors

They might not be warriors themselves, but at least O’Connors descend from them! The O’Connor name, with its varied spellings, doesn’t spring from a common source. The name arose in five areas of Ireland: Connacht, Kerry, Derry, Offaly and Clare and split into six distinct septs.

The most prominent sept is that of the Connacht O’Connors who gave us the last two High-Kings of Ireland: Turlough O’Connor (1088-1156) and Roderick O’Connor (1116-1198). They trace their heritage and name from the Irish “Ua Conchobhair,” meaning from Conchobhar, a king of Connacht.

9. O’Neill – From Niall of the Nine Hostages

The O’Neill family traces its history back to 360 A.D. to the legendary warrior king of Ireland, Niall of the Nine Hostages, who is said to have been responsible for bringing St. Patrick to Ireland. Niall is also said to have been incredibly fertile – he has 3 million descendants worldwide.

“O’Neill” is derived from two separate Gaelic words, “Ua Niall,” which means grandson of Niall, and “Neill” meaning “champion.” Ireland’s O’Neills were known by the nickname “Creagh,” which comes from the Gaelic word “craobh” meaning branch, because they were known to camouflage themselves to resemble the forest when fighting the Norsemen. Crafty fellows, those O’Neills.

10. O’Reilly – Descendants of Raghaillach

It means descendants of Raghaillach.

The O’Reillys were the most powerful sept of the old Gaelic kingdom of Breffny (Cavan and the surrounding counties), and the family is still prominent in the area. Reilly, often spelled Riley, has become a trendy given name in the U.S., for both baby boys and girls.