Manx surnames

Manx surnames are surnames which originate on the Isle of Man. These reflect the recorded history of the island which can be divided into three different eras - Gaelic, Norse, and English. In consequence most Manx surnames are derived from the Gaelic, Norse or English languages.

During the first period of recorded history the island was occupied by Celtic speaking peoples and later Christianised by Irish missionaries.

By the 9th century Vikings, generally from Norway, ruled the island: Old Norse speaking settlers intermarried with the Gaelic speaking native population, and Norse personal names found their way into common Manx usage.

By the 13th century the island became a Scottish possession, but passed back and forth between Scotland and England for a hundred years before finally coming under British rule, resulting in open immigration from the occupying country.

Under the English many surnames introduced to the island were translated into Manx, while many indigenous Manx surnames became Anglicised. Immigration from Ireland brought Hiberno-Norman surnames to the island as well.

Very few Manx surnames are recorded prior to the arrival of the Stanleys in 1405. The majority of early surnames are recorded in the Manorial Rolls dating from 1510-1513. More recent sources of surnames are Parish records from the beginning of the 17th century.

Arthur William Moore analysed the origin of Manx surnames in use at the beginning of the 19th century: of 170 surnames, about 100 (65 percent) are of Celtic origin while about 30 (17.5 percent) were of Norse-Gaelic origin.

Patronymic names were formed by the use of the Gaelic prefix Mac to the father's name. The "Irish" O (Ó) never took root among Manx names.

By the early 16th century, the Mac prefix was almost universally used on the island; but, by the 17th century, it had almost completely disappeared. The pronunciation of the prefix Mac was unstressed, so that the final consonant became first consonant in the second element of the name (the father's personal name). When the Mac prefix fell out of use, the final consonant became the first sound of the surname. Because of this, many Manx names characteristically begin with the letters C, K, or Q.

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