310 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



worthy of victory. Compare with this the names Molbthaigh, praise- 

 worthy, Carthaigh,* worthy of friends ; Hanratty (O'h Innreehtaigh), 

 worthy of honour. (Indrechtach in one of the codices is translated 

 " honorabilis.") The common termination of these names — tach — may 

 be the same word as that given by O'Reilly, and stated to mean 

 "worth," or it may simply represent an adjectival termination. 

 Dr. O'Donovan considered the Cubh in Cobhthaigh, and wher- 

 ever else it appears in Irish personal names, as meaning "aid," 

 "assistance," and he thus elucidates the name O'Conchobhair (O'Con- 

 nor) as from Con, strength and Cobh, aid : but when one considers 

 that Cubh means also victory in Irish, and that names compounded of 

 this word have been found in old Gallic inscriptions {e.g., Cobnertus, 

 Coblaunon, &c), and have been elucidated by Zeiiss as containing the 

 latter import of the word, I think it is more reasonable so to trans- 

 late it in the cases above mentioned, and in such other names as Olcho- 

 bhair (great victor). Galehobhair (now Gallagher), i. e., valorous 

 victor (from gal = valour ?) It may be observed that con is not always 

 to be translated strength, in the personal names in which it occurs. 

 I am not satisfied, indeed, that it ever bears that meaning in such 

 cases. f At all events, it stands frequently in personal names for the 

 genitive of cu, dog, e.g., Condoirche {i.e., of the dark dog) ; Condub- 

 han (i.e., of the black dog) ; Condulig (of the hungry dog). 



But to return to our examples. "We have Feehtnach, glossed 

 felix in the Milan Codex ; Cosgrach (now Anglicised Cosgrave), "vic- 

 torious," from Cop-cup, victory ; O'Fhlaithbheartach (now O'Flaherty 

 and O'Laverty), princely-deeded, from Flaith, a prince and heart, a 

 deed (cf. Toirbheartach = generosus) ; 0' Mathgamhna and MaeMath- 

 gamhnan (now O'Mahoney and MacMahon), which contain most pro- 

 bably the adjective math, good, combined with another word gamhna, 

 which is frequently found in Irish personal names, e.g.. Carrghamhna, 

 Baghamhna, Ciunghamhna, Tedghamhna, and separately, as Gamhna. 

 This would show that none of these names has anything to do with 

 "bear," (whatever they may have to do with 50.1ri.Mn, a calf,) and 

 would thus overthrow entirely the Fitz Ursa theory of Spenser. The 

 Welsh personal names Math-onwy, Matgweith (i.e., good work), &c., 

 bear out the above view. Brian is said by O'Donovan to befroin Dpi, 

 which he translates "strength," probably moral strength, and might 

 therefore come also under the class derived from mental characteristics. 



Art, Artur, O'Hartigan {i.e., O'h-Artigan), MacArtan, Artghal 

 (now Anglicised as a prano/nen to 'Arnold'), Artbran (Ann. of Ttgh,) 

 and a great many others similar, are derived from Ape, which O'Duno- 

 van makes to mean noble. Zeuss makes it a stone. (Vol. i., p. 78, 



* This Car is found in many ancient British and Armorican name?, e.g., 

 British Caractacus = Caratauc = Caradoc : Atgar, Concar; and Armorican Haelcar, 

 Hencar, Lowencar, Sec. 



t The Welsh Cum (= height, summit), which Zeuss makes to he the " Ctm" in 

 Cunobilnius, Cunotam, and the "6'Ao»"in Chonomoris, would suggest another 

 origin. This " Own" is short, and is to he found in Irish shortened into the two 

 first letters of Cnoc, a hill, pronounced in Munster as Cminuc'k. 



