400+ Irish Last Names (With Meanings and Popularity)

We'd be leery of this one.

Actor Pierce made both his first and last name appealing.

Gently pleasant English family name long associated with 60-Minuteman Morley Safer.

A common surname in Ireland, often use as an anglicization of Mac Giolla Phádraig. This name could honor a Patrick. It's also a way to get to Fitz as a nickname.

If you're looking for an Irish last name that moves beyond Casey and Cassidy, this one is pleasant sounding and worth considering. Kavanaugh, which can also be spelled Cavanagh, Cavenagh, Kavanagh, and Cavanaugh, is one of the few traditional Irish surnames not to start with Mc or O'. Kavanagh relates to the name first Kevin or Caomhan. Early kings of Leinster bore the name Kavanaugh.

Too close to baloney.

Kavanagh, which can also be spelled Cavanagh, Cavenagh, Kavanaugh, and Cavanaugh, is one of the few traditional Irish surnames not to start with Mc or O'. Kavanagh relates to the name first Kevin or Caomhan. Early kings of Leinster bore the name Kavanagh.

Cullinan is an Irish surname that is unusual but accessible, with the unique nickname of Cully.

Trivia tidbit: The Cullinan diamond was the largest rough diamond ever found--over 3,000 carats--when it was unearthed in 1905.

Irish surname that refers to High King Brian Boru, also spelled O'Brien. Makes a fabulous first name.

This Irish surname-name certainly feels brighter and fresher than the English equivalent, Clark.

Undiscovered Irish surname with a lot more bounce and masculine dash than Shannon.

Gary Sinise chose this Mc name for his late son McCanna, called Mac, in 1990, before Irish and Scottish surnames beginning with Mc or Mac became common as first names. Mac Sinise passed away from a rare form of cancer at the age of 33.

An Irish surname choice that could very well make its way into first name territory.

An uncommon Irish surname name with ties to nature, it would make a more distinctive alternative to the Scottish Lachlio. Lochran is one of those rare Irish baby names for boys not yet known in the US.

Anglicized form of Irish Ó Cearmada, which is reminiscent of other jaunty Irish surnames like Cassidy and Connolly.

McCabe is an Irish patronymic surname that originated with Scottish mercenaries in Ireland who wore distinctive hats -- or cabas, which is also the name for capes.

There are many dynamic three-syllable Irish surnames; this is one of the rarer two-syllable ones. Molloy is the title of a 1951 novel by Samuel Beckett, initially written in French. Another Beckett novel of naming interest is Malone Dies.

An Irish surname choice that could very well make its way into first name territory.