Murphy

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Murphy
Family name
Meaning "sea-warrior"
Region of origin Ireland
Language(s) of origin Irish
Related names Murchadh, Murphey, MacMurphy, MacMurrough, Morphy, O'Morchoe, O'Murphy, Murray

Murphy is an Anglicized version of two Irish surnames: Ó Murchadha/Ó Murchadh ("descendant of Murchadh"), and Mac Murchaidh/Mac Murchadh ("son of Murchadh")[1] derived from the Irish personal name Murchadh, which meant "sea-warrior" or "sea-battler".[2] (Muir meaning "sea" and cath meaning "battle").[3]

In modern Irish, "Ó Murchú", rather than "Ó Murchadha", is used.

Murphy is the most common surname in Ireland, the fourteenth most common surname in Northern Ireland and the fifty-eighth most common surname in the United States.[4]

Notable people named Murphy[edit]

Men[edit]

Women[edit]

Fictional[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Brewer, Paul (2002). Ireland: History, People, Culture. Running Press. p. 351. ISBN 0-7624-1269-0. 
  2. ^ MacLysaght, Edward (1991). The Surnames of Ireland. Irish Academic Press. p. 221. ISBN 978-0-7165-2366-6. 
  3. ^ Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006), A Dictionary of First Names, Oxford Paperback Reference (2nd ed.), Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 352, 406, ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1 
  4. ^ "Genealogy Data: Frequently Occurring Surnames from Census 2000". Census.gov. Retrieved 2012-04-19. 

External links[edit]

  • Murphys of Ireland website, featuring general information about the Murphy surname, including derivation and discussion of the major early Murchadha septs in Ireland.
  • Official Home of the Murphy Clan, including a wealth of historical content about Ireland's Murphy Clan such as clan history, famous people, homelands, genealogy, discussion forums and blog articles.