Scottish Gaelic Personal Naming System - Nicknames

Nicknames

Nicknames (Scottish Gaelic: far-ainm, frith-ainm) in Gaelic operate similarly to those in other languages and usually indicate a physical characteristic, an occupation, a location or an incident the person is associated and so forth.

Some examples

Character traits

• Caitrìona na h-Aonar ("Catriona on her own"), a woman who enjoyed doing everything on her own

Geographical references

• An t-Arcach ("The Orcadian"), a man who used to fish around the Orkney Islands in his youth
• Bliadhnach Phabaigh ("Pabbay yearling"), a woman who had been a year old when the Isle of Pabbay was cleared of people

Humorous names

• Calum Seòladair ("Calum Sailor"), an unusual name for a woman who was in the habit of wearing a sailor's cap
• Clag a' Bhaile ("The town bell"), a man with a very loud voice

Occupation

• Ailean Còcaire ("Alan the cook"), a man who was employed at one time as the cook at Ormacleit Castle
• Aonghas a' Bhancair ("Angus the banker"), a man who was employed in a bank in Nova Scotia
• Donchadh Clachair ("Duncan the stonemason" but always presented in English as the literal translation, "Duncan Stoner"), a known 19th and 20th century resident of Achadh an Droighinn/Auchindrain township in Argyll, Scotland: used for Duncan Munro, d. 1937.
• Domnhall Rothach ("Donald on wheels"), used in Argyll in the 1920s to describe a Donald MacCallum who ran a mobile grocer's shop in a van

Physical characteristics

• Bodach a' Chnatain ("The old man of the cold")
• Calum na Coise ("Calum of the leg"), a man who had a short leg
• Dòmhnall na Cluaise ("Donald of the ear"), a man who is said to have lost an ear in a fight
• Raibeart Bhan ("Fair Robert"), a man called Robert with light-coloured hair

Other

• An Caillteanach ("The lost one"), a man who had gotten lost, causing the entire village to spend the night looking for him
• Ìomhair a' Bhogha Mhaide ("Ivor of the wooden bow"), a renowned archer and one time resident of Pabay
• Bell a' Phuill ("Bella who lives by the muddy place"), used for Isabella McCallum (1822-1915) of Achadh an Droighinn/Auchindrain township in Argyll, Scotland: her house was close to the ford where the cattle crossed the burn