Boy's name

Maolsheachlainn

“mwayl-SHAKH-lin”

'devotee of St Seachnall'

MalachyMelaghlinMiloMalachi

The story behind the name

Máel Sechnaill mac Domnaill was the high king who took Dublin from the Norse in 980 and later yielded the high kingship to Brian Boru without a fight — and took it back after Clontarf. St Malachy, the 12th-century reformer, is the name's other great bearer. St Malachy of Armagh, who bore the same name, brought the Cistercians to Ireland and founded Mellifont in 1142.

Its age Associated with AD 980 — Norse Cities & the Rise of Brian. See Ireland in that year on the atlas ↗

Quick answers

How do you pronounce Maolsheachlainn?

Maolsheachlainn is pronounced “mwayl-SHAKH-lin”. Irish has three main dialect groups (Ulster, Connacht and Munster) and many names are said differently in each. The respellings here give the pronunciation most commonly heard in Irish English; where a well-known variant exists, both are shown.

What does the name Maolsheachlainn mean?

Maolsheachlainn means 'devotee of St Seachnall'.

Is Maolsheachlainn a boy's or a girl's name?

Maolsheachlainn is traditionally a boy's name in Ireland.

How popular is the name Maolsheachlainn in Ireland?

Maolsheachlainn was the number 110 boys' name in the Republic of Ireland in 2025, from number 173 ten years earlier. That is its best year yet. Source: the CSO's register of names given three or more times.

How else is Maolsheachlainn spelled?

Other spellings and equivalents include Malachy, Melaghlin, Milo, Malachi. Irish names were written down by English-speaking clerks for centuries, which is why so many spellings survive for one name.

In the register

#110 for boys in 2025 (#173 in 2015)

The full register → CSO, Republic of Ireland, names given three or more times.

Meanings follow Ó Corráin & Maguire's Irish Names and Woulfe; pronunciations give the commonest Irish-English form. Know this name better — a dialect pronunciation, a family tradition? Tell us. · All Irish names A–Z