Irish names that became English names
Many names that feel English or American began as Irish names that were respelled to fit English spelling. Here are the pairs, with the Irish original, the familiar form and how each is said.
Not sure what you want? Describe it to our AI Name Finder →
Seán SHAWN → Shane SHAYN, Shaun SHAWN
The Irish form of John. Shane and Shaun are English respellings of how Seán sounds.
Caitlín KAT-leen → Kathleen KATH-leen
The Irish form of Catherine. Kathleen is the older English respelling; Kaitlin and Caitlin are more recent.
Diarmuid DEER-mid → Dermot DUR-mut
The name of a hero of Irish legend. Dermot is the usual English form.
Conchobhar → Connor KON-er
Meaning lover of hounds. Connor and Conor are the common English spellings.
Síle SHEE-la → Sheila SHEE-la
An Irish form of Cecilia. Sheila is how English speakers wrote it.
Máire → Moira MOY-ra
The Irish form of Mary. Moira is the Anglicised version; Máirín, little Mary, became Maureen.
Brighid → Bridget BRIJ-it
The name of a goddess and a saint. Bridget is the English form.
Eibhlín ay-LEEN → Eileen EYE-leen
Eileen began as an English respelling of Eibhlín, which itself came from a Norman name.
Gearóid GAR-ode → Gerard JER-ard
Gerard came to Ireland with the Normans and was taken into Irish as Gearóid.
Pádraig PAW-drig → Patrick PAT-rik
Both come from the Latin Patricius. Pádraig is the Irish form; Patrick is the English one.
Treasa TRASS-uh → teresa
Treasa is the Irish form of Teresa.
Cailín → Colleen KOL-een
Colleen comes from the Irish word cailín, meaning girl, and is a word before it is a name.
Why the spellings changed
As English became the everyday language across much of Ireland, names were often written down by English speakers working from how they heard them, so spellings followed English habits, not Irish ones. That is how a name like Seán, said “shawn”, came to be written Shaun, Shawn and Shane. The Irish originals never went away, and many families are now returning to them.
If you want to say the Irish forms, see Irish names people often mispronounce.
Frequently asked questions
Is Shane an Irish name?
Yes. Shane is an English respelling of the Irish name Seán, which is the Irish form of John.
What is the Irish version of Kathleen?
Caitlín, pronounced roughly "KAT-leen" in Irish. Kathleen is the older English spelling of the same name.
Are Irish and English versions of a name the same name?
They share a root, but they are spelled and pronounced differently, and many people treat the Irish form as the proper name and the English form as a version of it.