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In the Republic of Ireland, formerly the Irish Freestate, Irish has been an official language since independence in the 1920s. One can see both Irish and English used on official documents from the ROI. The republic has also set up Gaeltachts, which are areas in which Irish is supposedly used by much of the community (the definition and the reality are often at odds) - these are generally scattered along the west coast. | In the Republic of Ireland, formerly the Irish Freestate, Irish has been an official language since independence in the 1920s. One can see both Irish and English used on official documents from the ROI. The republic has also set up Gaeltachts, which are areas in which Irish is supposedly used by much of the community (the definition and the reality are often at odds) - these are generally scattered along the west coast. | ||
Irish gives rise to many Irish surnames, including any beginning with: | |||
* Mac, Mc, M' or Mag- e.g. Maguire, McDonnell, MacGuinness. "Mac" means "son of". | |||
* O' e.g. O' Dwyer, O' Higgins. "O" means "grandson of". | |||
It was quite common for many families to drop the Mac or O' from their surnames, so some of the names above might also appear as Dwyer, Higgins, Guinness etc. In certain names, "Mac" also became "Fitz" e.g. Fitzgerald. | |||
Many other Irish names also derive from Irish Gaelic, e.g. Branagh (Breathnach) | |||
The old Gaelic naming system is extremely complex, and exists mainly in oral tradition. | |||
Many personal names such as Shaun (John), Kevin, Conor, Neil, Maeve and Kathleen all ultimately derive from the language too. There are other, traditional, Gaelic names which have no direct equivalents in English: Domhnall, which is normally rendered as the unrelated Daniel or Donald; Grainne, for which there is nothing similar in English, and it is rendered as 'Grace'; Cathal, which is "matched" with Charles. | |||
In the last hundred years, many people have given their children Irish names in the original spelling, e.g. the actors Saoirse Ronan and Ciarán Hinds. This is more common in the Republic, and when it occurs in Northern Ireland is usually connected with people who come from a Roman Catholic or Nationalist/Republican background. | |||
== Ulster Scots == | == Ulster Scots == | ||