De-Anglicisation of Names

[slohairt]

Dia Dhuit!

I wasn't sure which forum to stick this in, so I decided it be would Heraldry. The following is a repeat of something I posted a few days ago and forgot to respond!

This goes out to all kilties: When I was in school, one area I excelled at was "de-Anglicisation" (a term affectionately coined by one of my professors) meaning I'm good at taking modern-day anglicised Celtic names & surnames and reverting them to their original form. At one time I used to do this for a heraldry company. Given alternate spellings and such, it can sometimes be difficult. My own last name is anglicised as O'Hart, O'Harte, O'Hairt, Hart, and Harte. So, if anyone wants to know the original form of their name, post it, and I'll give it a try for fun. Even if it isn't Celtic I could tell you a "gaelicised" version - i.e. "Fisher" = Mac an Iascaire!

So here is what you've given me so far:

Thank for giving me the hard one first!

WAGES Hmm, that's a tricky one. As for its origins in Wallace, who knows? Wallace itself, however, is not a Gaelic name. The Lowland surname Wallace comes from the Anglo-Saxon Wealisc meaning foreign. (Incidentally, this is where the word Wales comes from!) The surname indicates the ethnic origin of its bearer. The early Anglo-Saxon settlers in the Lowlands would have used it to refer to the ancient Strathclyde Britons. The Gaelic equivalent would be Breathnach (pronounced BRAN-AKH) meaning Briton.

DAVIS Davis (also Davies) is one of the most common names in Wales. (McClef could testify to this for sure!) It means son of David and would be Ap Dafydd (pronounced AP DAV-ITH) in Welsh. (Ap corresponds to Mac) So, the Gaelic version would be Mac Daibhidh (pronounced MAC DAV-EE), which is the Gaelic form of the Scottish surname Davidson, though of course, no connection. Mac Daibh as you wrote, was probably a misspelling somewhere of Mac Daidh. Daidh (pronounced DAY or DYE) is a pet form of Daibhidh.
P.S. Gordon is Gòrdanach (pronounced GORD-AN-AKH)

BUNT Hmm. Could be Cornish (that's a little out of my area, though). A Gaelic rendering would be de Bunnt (IRISH) or Bunnd (SCOTTISH GAELIC). You might want to look up Bond, too. They're probably the same name.

GRAHAM Ah, this is my paternal grandmother's maiden name! It's origins are widely disputed. Some say its Pictish, some say it's from the Anglo-Saxon Grantham...who knows? Whatever the origin, the Gaelic form is Gréamach (IRISH) and Greumach (SCOTTISH GAELIC). Both are pronounced GRAEM-AKH.

A Ghréamaigh (Irish) or A Ghreumaich (Scottish Gaelic) is how you address someone in Gaelic. Basically, it goes like this: "A" is placed before the name and if the name begins with the letters B, C, D, F, G, M, P, S, or T, then an "h" is placed after, thus changing the sound. This is called lenition. Lastly, the name is put into the possessive form (often by adding an "i" before the lact consonant)

Examples:
Seán (John)=A Sheáin (pronounced A HyAWN)
Séamas (James)=A Shéamais (pronounced A HAMISH)
Tomás (Thomas)=A Thomáis (pronounced A HOM-ISH)
Mícheál (Michael)=A Mhíchíl (pronounced A VEE-HyILL)

[Deil the Yin]

How about "Walker"?

[Tattoo Bradley]

Henderson = son of Henry = MacEanruig

Sound right to you? It's what I've always found in my searchings.

[slohairt]

Dia Dhuit!

WALKER one who who waulks or treads cloth in the process known as fulling. Thus, Walker, or rather Waulker, would be a Lowland Scots name. A Gaelic translation would be Mac an tSiúbhail (IRISH) and Mac an t-Siùbhail (SCOTTISH GAELIC).

HENDERSON Yes, you're right. It's Mac Eanruig meaning son of Henry. MacKendrick is the same name. However, one should avoid the temptation to put the Mac prefix together with the root when using the Gaelic form. That in itself is an Anglicisation! It's really a separate word.

[Kid Cossack]

Oakley? Ballard?

[Improv1]

I am a Passmore (the family that lived past the moor) with origins in Devonshire, but my Grandmother was a Muir...

[slohairt]

Ah, more tricky ones!

Three methods are usually taken when performing "de-Anglicisation"

1) Straightforward de-Anglicisation: taking a name and its variants and reverting to its original form: i.e. MacDonald, MacDonnell, MacDaniel, Donaldson = Mac Domhnuill
2)Translation of a name that was not originally Gaelic: i.e. Smith = Mac a' Ghobhainn
3) Transliteration. representing the sound of the name according to Gaelic orthography. i.e. John Brown = Seán de Brún

And now for the names:

OAKLEY To the best of my knowledge, Oakley is an English name which could also mean it was found in Lowland Scotland as well. Ley or Leigh is an Anglo-Saxon word for field. Oak, is of course, oak! So, a Gaelic translation would more or less be Gort na Dara meaning field of the oak. Pronounced much as it looks. Sorry it doesn't look all that great!

BALLARD Norman-French, I'm guessing. In which case, a Gaelic transliteration would be de Ballárd.

PASSMORE I'm not really sure on this one. A translation could be Thar Mhóinteach? Not that great looking, I know.

MUIR The Lowland Scots version of the English word moor. Gaelic translation would be Móinteach (IRISH) and Mòinteach (SCOTTISH GAELIC). If you really like the Mac prefix you could render it Mac an Móintigh (IRISH) or Mac a' Mòintich (SCOTTISH GAELIC) Both mean son of the moors.

[Andrew Breecher]

My name isn't Gaelic, but when Johann Brücher enlisted in the Civil War, the enlisting officer wrote down John Breecher.

Andrew.

[slohairt]

Dia Dhuit, A Aindréis!

That's an interesting story. I'll bet it happened a lot in those days.

Breecher would be transliterated into Gaelic as Bríséir (pronounced BREESH-AIR). "Ch" is a sound that doesn't really occur officially in Gaelic. (Well, actually it does, but only in certain dialects and it's represented by the letter "t" preceded or followed by "i" or "e".) The "sh" sound as represented by "s" preceded or followed by "i" or "e" is often used to fill in for foreign sounds like "ch" or "j"
So, using the "t" variant from above, Breecher could also be rendered Brítéir (BREETCH-AIR)

Hope this wasn't baffling!

[mddock58]

Great Thread!

Paternal name Dockendorf - German translation (Literal) Dock in Village

Paternal Grandmother was Moore (same root as Muir) Her mother was Mooney

Maternal Grandfather was Hodder
Maternal Great-Grandfather was Moffatt