Taobh thiar den Scáileán - Ár dTaighde / Behind the Screen - Our Research

Bhuel, ní raibh blag agam riamh roimhe seo.  Bainfidh mé áis as a insint daoibh cad atá ar siúl taobh thair den scáileán.  /  I've never had a blag before.  I'll use it to tell you what's going on behind the scenes.

10/25/2016

Ag obair arís ar innéacs cuimsitheach do Chartlann na bPápaí chun é a chur i gcomparáid leis an mbunachar sonraí ar chruthaíomar do fhinte oidhreachtúla Éireannacha .  /  Again working on a comprehensive index of the Papal Archives to compare it to the database of hereditary Irish families we created.

10/24/2016

Tá Alex, MacKenzie, Caitlin, Mingzun, agus Jenna ag obair liom ar innéacsanna Chartlanna na bPápaí.   Ar fheabhas!  ///  Alex, MacKenzie, Caitlin, Mingzun, and Jenna are working with me on the indexes of the Papal Archives.  Excellent!

10/23/2016

Anois, ar ais ar bhailiú innéacsanna (mar an ceann thíos) ó Chartlanna na bPápaí chun iad a chur i gcomparáid leis an mbunachar sonraí a chuireamar le chéile ó na hannála Éireannacha thar na 3 bliana is deire.  Tugaigí faoi deara na héagsúlachtaí i litriú  ///  Now, back to collecting indexes (like the one below) from the Papal Archives to compare them with the database we put together from the Irish annals over the last 3 years.  Take note of the differences in spelling.

Agus, ar ndóigh, seo daoibh litriú ceart an ainm 'Murphy' as Gaeilge:  /  And, of course, here's the correct spelling of 'Murphy' in Irish:

Ó Murchadha nó/or Ó Murchú.

Mac Murchadha nó/or Mac Murchú.

7/15/2017

ANGLICIZATION AND LATINIZATION OF IRISH SURNAMES - WHEN IT HAPPENED AND BY WHOM

I can’t remember seeing any anglicization by the Gaeil of their surnames in the medieval period.  The English were misspelling Irish names in that period, but that misspelling wasn’t accept by the Gaeil.  From what I’ve seen, the acceptance of anglicizations by the Gaeil doesn’t happen until after 1605 (until after the conquest of Ireland in 1603 and imposition of Common Law in 1605), and it begins very slowly with only a few taking not only an English surname but claiming an English genealogy in an attempt to avoid confiscation.  This rarely worked.  Anglicization of Irish surnames accelerated in the 18^th century and became widespread in the 19^th century.  

I just finished analyzing about 10,000 papal entries from the medieval period and have thereby learned that when the Gaeil wrote in Latin (as many did), they often or typically used Latin phonetics for Irish surnames.  Sometimes the Latin phonetics worked fine, by which I mean it’s relatively easy to work back to the original Irish Gaelic surname if you speak Irish.  Unfortunately, sometimes the result completely obscured the original Irish Gaelic surname.  Out of the many hundreds of latinized Irish surnames I found in the papal records, I can’t identify the medieval or modern Irish Gaelic spelling of about 80 such surnames, as follows:     

Mac                 abeus

Ó         h          alulok (Ohalulok, Yhalulok)

Ó                     Brymg

Ó                     Btiel, Matthew, canon of Killaloe, papal mandatary

Mac                 byrgemayn

Ó                     Colonarii, Nillanus, rector of Tullyniskan and vicar of Kilmore, co. Armagh

Ó                     Comolcon

Ó                     Coniruyger Henry, rector of Killuran and Feakle

Ó                     Coyulerga (i.e. Colleary?)

Mac                 cultuilro, onius, a Franciscan tertiary

Mac                 danim, Mecdanim, Odo, dean of Arh

Mac                 dondebayger, Roger

Ó                     Dralbaguyan, John, commission for

Mac                 ecolio, Ralph de

Mac                 em

Mac                 erummel, Macherummel

Ó                     fecomb, John, a Cistercian monk

Ó                     flaforen, Cornelius, to be an Augustinian canon of St. Mary, Annaghdown

Ó                     Ftftus, Roger, canon

Mac                 ganegemarth, John, rector of St. Tierney's, Clones

Ó                     Gdredi, Walter, clerk

Mac                 iarellis

Mac                 icsian, Mahicsiain, Mahycseayn

Ó                     ky, John, priest

Ó                     Lnachi

Ó                     Lrahan, Maurice, to be rector of Aghadowey -, William, sometime rector of Aghadowey

Mac                 Maesmam, Macfmam, Macsmaner

Ó                     Mathet

Ó                     Mibili

Mac                 microbut alias de Dundonayll, Thomas, canon of Killala

Ó                     Mitria, Patrick, warden of Yhondonayn, grant of the fruits of an appropriated vicarage made by

Ó                     Molhau

Ó                     Mubceayn

Ó                     Mubraty

Ó                     Mullontus, Ymullontus, Dermit, union confirmed for

Ó                     Mundh, Nollan, priest

Ó                     mustrad.Thomas, canon of Dromore

Ó                     myam

Ó                     Mychaym

Ó                     Mylem, John, vicar of Drum,   -, -, Ymuleon, Nicholas, vicar of Drum

Ó                     Nchachtrijck

Ó                     Nesteby, Nstebi, Thomas, rector of Westn-super-Mare, dispensation to,

Ó                     Nnayng, John,

Ó                     Nochetroyn, Ynochetroyn, Cornelius, to have a priory in the diocese of Elphin,

Mac                 nokagirg

Ó                     Nverhan (sic), Nicholas, to be dean of Raphoe,

Mag                 nybne, Megnybne, Magonius

Ó         h          obugan

Ó         h          olerrbly

Mac                 onarric (?), Maurice, to be vicar of Nohaval,

Mac                 orm, Nelanus, canon of Derry, papal mandatary

Ó         h          oumys, Yhoumys, Magonius, rector of Ballinrobe.  -, - See also Othomais.

Ó                     pys, Richard, priest,

Mac                 regnet, Roger, a monk of Fore and de facto prior of the same,

Ó                     Rkemmin, John, a canon of Tuam, papal mandatary,

Ó                     Rnoli, John, detainer of Aghiart,

Ó                     rstauhan alias Ostulahon

Ó                     Rueladi

Ó                     Scbr (? rectius Sebar)

Ó                     Tnonia, Mark, priest,

Ó                     Ttesele, Peter, Augustinian canon,

Mac                 ubrlyn, Thomas, Friar Preacher, .

Mac                 uorinyla, Micuorinyla, John, sometime a canon of Cashel and prebendary of Killardry and Cloonfinglass,

Mac                 urwart, John, late archdeacon of Down,

Mac                 uyrlogyn, Thomas, dean of Ross,

Mag                 wadardh

Ó                     wnonayll, Thady, detainer of Galey.

Ó                     wvayn (or wbayn)

Ó                     wyg, John, vicar of Killua,

Ó         h          ynnigan

Ó         h          ynnows, Yhynnows

Ó         h          yrelayn, yrealeayn, Cornelius, vicar of Tiranascragh

Ó         h          yrmegaych, Oirmegaich, Cornelius, rector of Ardstraw

Best,

Jerry