Boy's name
Rónán
“ROH-nawn”
IPA: /ɾˠoːˈn̪ˠɑːn̪ˠ/
from rón, 'seal' — 'little seal'
The story behind the name
A dozen saints bore it, and in the old stories it belongs to a king who, deceived by his wife, kills his own son Mael Fothartaig — a tale of tragic misjudgement told in 'Fingal Rónáin'. The seal in the name links it to the selkie lore of the western coasts.
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