Corcoran — Irish Surname Origin & Meaning
Irish form: O Corcrain
Meaning: 'descendant of Corcran, from corcair meaning purple or ruddy'
Traditional stronghold: Offaly, Clare
Pronunciation: KOR-kur-un; Irish O Corcrain: oh KOR-kran
History of the Corcoran name
O Corcrain, from a root meaning purple or ruddy-complexioned, gave rise to Corcoran septs located separately in the midlands, around Offaly, and in Munster, particularly Clare and Tipperary, the two branches developing independently rather than sharing a common recent ancestor. The name reflects the widespread early Irish practice of using colour-based physical descriptions as personal names that later became hereditary surnames. Corcoran anglicised smoothly and consistently, with the O prefix generally dropped, and remains a well-known midlands and Munster surname today. It was carried abroad extensively by emigration, notably to the United States, where Irish-American Corcorans became prominent in areas such as the military and law enforcement.
Variants: O'Corcoran · Corcorane
Famous bearers of the name
- Michael Corcoran — Irish-American Union Army general during the US Civil War
- Jane Corcoran — Irish actress
- Donagh Corcoran — Irish sportsperson
- Susannah Corcoran — British poet
Related names from the same part of Ireland: O'Brien · Kennedy · Quinn · Dunne · McDonnell · McMahon · Carroll · Mooney