Gaelic dynasty

O'Donoghue

Ó Donnchadha

Also: Donoghue, Donohoe, O'Donohue

“descendant of Donnchadh”

🏔 Kerry · Ciarraí 🏔 Cork · Corcaigh 🏔 Cavan · An Cabhán Source: Wikipedia ↗

The sept's historic heartland, highlighted. People moved — a name can be found far from home.

The story

Eóganacht royalty pushed from Cork into Kerry, where the O'Donoghue Mór ruled the lakes of Killarney — and, legend says, still rides across Lough Leane at dawn each May Day. The O'Donoghue of the Glens is a recognised chief to this day.

Their world Around 1450 — The Gaelic Resurgence. Plague, absentee landlords and Gaelic recovery shrink English Ireland to a fortified strip around Dublin.

See them on the atlas ↗

What the name is made of

Ó Donnchadha
Ó — descendant of (originally grandson of)
Donnchadha — the ancestor, trade or place the name is built on

Find this form in the Irish-to-English index → · What Ó and Mac actually mean

Is O'Donoghue an Irish name?

O'Donoghue is a Gaelic name: it was formed in Irish, from an Irish ancestor, before English was spoken here.

The five answers, and why it is rarely yes or no →

From Wikipedia — “O'Donoghue”

Donoghue or O'Donoghue is an anglicised form of the Irish language surname Ó Donnchadha or Ó Donnchú.

Read the full article ↗ · Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Neighbours — other names from the same counties

Buckley · Cork, Kerry Cronin · Cork, Kerry Culloty · Kerry, Cork Díaz · Cork, Kerry Dowling · Cork, Kerry Downey · Cork, Kerry Foley · Kerry, Cork Galvin · Kerry, Cork Kelleher · Cork, Kerry McCarthy · Cork, Kerry Moynihan · Kerry, Cork O'Mahony · Cork, Kerry O'Sullivan · Cork, Kerry Riordan · Cork, Kerry

Quick answers

Is O'Donoghue an Irish name?

O'Donoghue is a Gaelic name: it was formed in Irish, from an Irish ancestor, before English was spoken here. In Irish the name is Ó Donnchadha.

What does the surname O'Donoghue mean?

O'Donoghue (Irish: Ó Donnchadha) means “descendant of Donnchadh”. Origin: Gaelic dynasty.

Where in Ireland is the surname O'Donoghue from?

The historic homeland of the O'Donoghue name is Kerry, Cork, Cavan. People moved, so the name can be found far beyond it.

What is the Irish for O'Donoghue?

Ó Donnchadha. Related spellings: Donoghue, Donohoe, O'Donohue.

Looking for the O'Donoghue family crest? Read this first — arms belong to people, not surnames, and the honest version is more interesting. Tracing O'Donoghue ancestors? The step-by-step guide.

Not your spelling? Try the full A–Z. Know more about the O'Donoghue name? Add to the story.