Re: OT: Anthroponymics
| From: | Elliott Lash <erelion12@...> |
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| Date: | Wednesday, October 19, 2005, 13:54 |
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Carsten Becker wrote:
> BTW, how were Irish and Scottish women called
> if "O'" and "Mac" mean "son of"?
First of all "o" means "grandson of" and is almost
exclusively for Irish names (from what I've seen). The
equivalent for women is "ni". (Both of which have long
vowels). Mac means "son of" and the equivalent for
females is "nic". "Ni" is a short form of "Inion Ui"
"daughter of the grandson of", and "nic" is a short
form of "inion mhic" "daughter of the son of"
So:
Male: Mac Gearailt "Gerald's Son"
Female: Nic Ghearailt "Gerald's Son's Daughter"
Male: Ó Dónaill "Donald's grandson"
Female: Ní Dhónaill "Donald's grandson's daughter"
In Scotland, only "Mac" and "Nic" are used.
-Elliott
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