Hackett — Irish Surname Origin & Meaning
Irish form: Haicéid
Meaning: 'from the Norman personal name Haket'
Traditional stronghold: Kilkenny, Tipperary
Pronunciation: HAK-it; Irish Haicéid: hak-AYD
History of the Hackett name
The Hacketts came to Ireland with the Anglo-Norman invasion, their name deriving from the Norman personal name Haket. They settled chiefly in the rich lands of Tipperary, Kilkenny and Kildare, where they held manors and gave their name to several townlands. Like many Norman families of the south they became thoroughly gaelicised, rendering the name Haicéid in Irish. Its most brilliant bearer was Pádraigín Haicéad, the fiery Dominican poet-priest of 1640s Tipperary, whose verse championed the Confederate Catholic cause with unmatched vehemence. The name remains most common across south Leinster and east Munster.
Variants: Hacket
Famous bearers of the name
- Pádraigín Haicéad — Tipperary Dominican and one of the great political poets of seventeenth-century Ireland.
- Francis Hackett — Kilkenny-born critic and historian who made his name in American letters.
Related names from the same part of Ireland: O'Brien · Ryan · Walsh · Kennedy · Brennan · Fitzpatrick · Carroll · Hogan