Mooney - Irish Surname Origin & Meaning
Irish form: Ó Maonaigh
Meaning: “wealthy”
Traditional stronghold: Offaly, Donegal
Pronunciation: MOO-nee; Irish O Maonaigh: oh MEE-nee
History of the Mooney name
O Maonaigh, meaning 'descendant of the wealthy or noble one', named septs found in several distinct areas, notably Fermanagh/Donegal in Ulster and separately in Westmeath and Meath, with the two groups sharing the name's meaning without necessarily sharing common descent. The Ulster sept was linked to the wider Cenel Conaill grouping, while the midland family was more locally rooted. Because the name derived from a fairly common descriptive term, it developed independently more than once, contributing to its wide spread across the country by the modern period. The O prefix was generally dropped, and Mooney is today common throughout Ulster, the midlands and beyond, carried further by 19th- and 20th-century emigration.
Variants: O'Mooney · Mahony (distinct) · Meaney
Famous bearers of the name
- Ria Mooney - Irish actress and the first female director of the Abbey Theatre
- Chris Mooney - American science journalist of Irish descent
- Paul Mooney - American comedian and writer
- Gavin Mooney - Scottish-Irish health economist
Related names from the same part of Ireland: Gallagher · Dunne · Boyle · Doherty · Sweeney · O'Donnell · Duffy · McLoughlin