ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2810
http://www.s-gabriel.org/2810
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8 Feb 2004
From: Aryanhwy merch Catmael 

Greetings from the Academy of S. Gabriel!

You wanted to know if <William McElroy> is an appropriate name for
an Irish mariner living in the late 1500's.  Here is a brief
letter with the information we have found.

Both <William> and <McElroy> are English-language names.  In your
period, a Gaelic man would have spoken Gaelic, but his name could
have been recorded in either Gaelic or English.  We can therefore
suggest both Gaelic and English forms of your name.

The English name <William> was adopted into Gaelic as <Uilliam>, 
pronounced just like the English name. [4]  <Uilliam> was fairly 
popular in the 16th century [1], and we have evidence that Gaelic men 
named <Uilliam> were recorded as <William> in English-language 
documents, including [3]:

   William O'Bardan    1570
   William ffitz Donell O'Ferrall   1570
   William Mc Donkaye O'Fferrall    1570
   William O Dowyn     1576
   William O'Banane    1576
   William Mc Teige    1576
   William O'Karrell   1576

As we noted in our original letter, <McElroy> is a modern English
form of the Gaelic family name <Mac Giolla Ruaidh>. [2]  As far as we 
can tell, <McElroy> is a modern form.  English forms of <mac Ghille 
Ruaidh> that were used in the late 16th century include 
<M'Gillarowe>, <M'Gillaroe>, <M'Gillaroye>, <M'Killeroe>, and 
<M'Killroy>. [2]  Any of these is a fine choice for your byname.

In formal circumstances, you also would have been identified by a 
patronymic byname (e.g., one indicating your father's name).  For 
example, if your father was named <Toma/s>, you could appear in 
formal documents as:

       <Uilliam mac Toma/is Mhic Ghiolla Ruaidh>

meaning 'Uilliam son of Toma/s Mac Giolla Ruaidh'.  (Here, the slash 
represents an acute accent over the previous letter, and the change 
from <Mac Giolla> to <Mhic Ghiolla> are requirements of Gaelic 
grammar).  You would also sometimes be known informally as <Uilliam 
mac Toma/is>.  If you would like to pick a name for your father, we 
recommend this article:

  "Index of Names in Irish Annals: Masculine Given Names"
  http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/

The subsection "Masculine Given Names: 1501-1600" will contain names 
appropriate for your period.  Once you've picked a name for your 
father, we would be happy to tell you the correct spelling and 
pronunciation of your patronymic byname.

In conclusion, a name like <William M'Killroy> is a fine English
form of a Gaelic <Uilliam Mac Giolla Ruaidh>.

We hope that this letter has been useful to you and that you won't
hesitate to write us again if any part was unclear or if you have
further questions.  Research and commentary on this letter was
provided by Arval Benicoeur, Juliana de Luna, Mari neyn Brian, and
Talan Gwynek.

For the Academy,
-Aryanhwy merch Catmael Caermyrdin, 08Feb2004

--
References:

[1] Mari Elspeth nic Bryan, "Index of Names in Irish Annals" 
(WWW: Academy of S. Gabriel, 2001-2002).
http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/ 

[2] Woulfe, Patrick, _Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish Names and 
Surnames_ (Kansas City: Irish Genealogical Foundation). s.n. Mac 
Giolla Ruaidh

[3] _Annala Rioghachta Eireann: Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland by 
the Four Masters from the Earliest period to the Year 1616_ edited 
from MSS. in the Library of the Royal Irish Academy and of Trinity 
College, Dublin with a translation by John O'Donovan, VII Volumes 
(Hodges, Smith, and Co: Dublin, 1854). vol. 5, pp. 1651-1652, 1690-
1691

In these records, <Mc> was recorded with the <c> superscripted.

[4] O/ Corra/in, Donnchadh and Fidelma Maguire, _Irish Names_ 
(Dublin: The Lilliput Press, 1990). s.n. Uilliam