Judge — Irish Surname Origin & Meaning
Irish form: Mac an Bhreitheamhan
Meaning: 'son of the judge (brehon)'
Traditional stronghold: Mayo, Sligo
Pronunciation: juj; Irish Mac an Bhreitheamhan: mock un VREH-hoo-un
History of the Judge name
Judge is a translation surname: the Irish original, Mac an Bhreitheamhan, means son of the brehon, the hereditary judge of the old Gaelic legal system, and the family presumably descends from practitioners of that learned profession. The name arose in north Connacht and is still found mainly in Sligo, Mayo and the adjoining counties. Where the name was transliterated rather than translated it survives as Breheny or Brehony, and families switched between the forms; Judge, Breheny and Brehony can therefore be branches of the same stock. Emigration carried the name to Britain and America in the nineteenth century.
Variants: Breheny · Brehony
Famous bearers of the name
- Jack Judge — English-born music-hall performer of Irish stock who co-wrote It's a Long Way to Tipperary.
- Mychal Judge — Franciscan friar and FDNY chaplain, son of Leitrim emigrants, killed ministering at the World Trade Center on 11 September 2001.
Related names from the same part of Ireland: Walsh · Burke · McGowan · Boland · Moran · Higgins · Conway · Feeney