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Irish baby boy names, N - Z

Don't bother looking for Irish baby boy names starting with the letters Q, V, W, X, Y or Z. There aren't any. Simple reason.... the traditional Irish alphabet doesn't include these letters (nor J or K).

At one time, there wasn't even a letter P, which means that Pádraig (Patrick), surely one of the most popular and well-known of Ireland's boys' names, would have been a troublesome name for the early Irish! It probably sounded very different until the late 1600s.

Since then, Pádhraig/Patrick has evolved and must now have more diminutives or abbreviated versions than any other single Irish name. Take your pick from Paddy, Patsy, Patty, Pat, Packy and Porrig in English, and Pádhraic, Páid, Páidí, Páidín, Paití and Parra in Irish.

In my own immediate family, we had three Patricks: my uncle Paddy, my father Pat, and my youngest brother Patrick. There was no confusion because each stuck to the version originally chosen. But the thread of any discussion became a bit tricky to follow when other friends or relations called Patrick (and there were plenty of them!) were thrown in to the conversation.

Perhaps the very success of the name was the reason it fell from favour in the late 20th century. It has picked up again since. The official list of the top Irish baby boy names for 2012 (see link in Related Pages box, left) showed it was only just outside the top 20 names in the Republic of Ireland.

Patrick, along with Philip and Timothy, tended to be the names chosen by the less well-off, regardless of religion, during the 18th and 19th centuries. Redmond and Rory were more likey to be Catholic. Sylvester, Theobald and Tirlough were often conferred on the infants of prosperous Catholics, while Paul, Percy, Ralph, Richard, Robert, Samuel and Saul were names preferred by Protestants.

Irish Name	Pronunciation	English equivalent	Meaning or Origin
Naoise	neesh-a		In Celtic legend, Naoise ran off with Dierdre, the betrothed of the King of Ulster who subsequently killed him. Poor Dierdre died of a broken heart. Although originally a boy's name it has become a unisex name.
Neachtan	Nack-tan		An alternative name for the Roman god Neptune and popular in the early medieval period.
Niall	Nile	Neil	Many of the high kings of Ireland bore this name but it was to be made famous by Niall of the Nine Hostages. Its meaning is uncertain, though it possibly means passionate.
Odhrán	Oh-dran	Oran	Although quite a popular saint's name, it has never taken off as a first name, despite meaning dark haired.
Oisín	Ush-een		The name of one of the Finn Tales' heroes and meaning fawn deer, this is one of the most traditional Irish baby boy names still in common use. In 2012, it was the 14th most popular name registered in the Republic.
Pádraig	Pawdrig/ Paw-rig	Patrick	A Latin borrowing meaning 'a patrician', the widespread use of the name honours Ireland's patron saint.
Rian/ Ríghán	Ree-an	Ryan	The English version has become one of the most common surnames of Ireland. The Irish version means little king.
Ríordán	Reer-dun		A very old name found mainly in Munster province and meaning royal poet.
Rónán	Roh-nan		In legend, King Ronan killed his own son after being tricked by his wife. The name means little seal and was popular in early Ireland.
Rúadhán	Roo-awn	Rowan	Meaning little red one, the name is traditionally bestowed on red-haired babies.
Ruairí	Roo-ree	Rory	The name means red king and it was one of the most popular of medieval Ireland. The last High King of Ireland was Ruairí Ua Conchobair (aka Rory O'Connor).
Saoirbhreathach	Serv-ra-hack		A popular name in medieval times among the MacCarthys, meaning noble of judgment. Perhaps due to its awkward spelling it has become uncommon.
Séamus	Shay-mus	James	Adapted from Jacobus, a common Latin name among Anglo-Norman settlers.
Seán	Shawn	John	One of the top three Irish baby boy names in modern times, it was adopted in the Middle Ages from the Anglo-Norman of Jehan, itself an adaptation of the Latin Joannes.
Tadc/ Tadhg	Teig	Timothy/ Thaddy	In Irish, means poet. It was a very common name throughout most of early and medieval Ireland (and borne by many great historical figures) and has enjoyed a recent revival
Tárlach	Tar-lack	Terence/ Turlough	A medieval name enjoying something of a renaissance. The name of kings of Munster and Connacht in the 11th and 12th centuries.
Tiarnán	Tier-nawn		In Irish, means lord or chief. Strongly linked to the O Rourke family.
Tomaltach	Tum-olt-ack		Extremely popular in Connaught province during the Middle Ages.