Aodh (given name)
male given name

Aodh ( ee, ay, Irish: [iː, eː], Scottish Gaelic: [ɯː]; Old Irish: Áed) is a masculine Irish and Scottish Gaelic given name, which was traditionally anglicized as Hugh. The name means 'fire' and was the name of a god in Irish mythology.
The name features in the Irish surnames Mac Aodha (lit. 'son of Aodh'; anglicized as McGee/McHugh/McKee) and Ó hAodha (lit. 'descendant of Aodh'; anglicized as Hayes/Hughes/O'Hea), and the Scottish surname Mac Aoidh ('son of Aodh'; anglicized McKay).
The name has a number of derived forms, including:
The feminine forms Aodhnait and Aodhamair.
Aodhán (Old Irish: Aedán), anglicized as Aidan, formed by the addition of the diminutive suffix -án.
Aogán (traditionally Aodhagán), a double diminutive. This form features in the surname Mac Aodhagáin ('son of Aodhagán'; anglicized as Egan and Keegan).
Maodhóg (Old Irish: Máedóc), anglicized as Mogue, derived from the pet form m'Aodhóg ('my little Aodh').
People with the name
Áed
Áed Rúad, legendary High king of Ireland
Áed mac Echach (died 575), king of Connacht
Áed mac Bricc (died 587), bishop and saint
Áed Dub mac Suibni (died 588), king of Dál nAraidi
Áed Dibchine (died c.595), king of Leinster
Áed mac Ainmuirech (died c.598), High king of Ireland
Áed Sláine (died 604), High king of Ireland
Áed Rón mac Cathail (died 604), king in Leinster
Áed Uaridnach (died 612), High king of Ireland
Áed Bennán mac Crimthainn (died 618), king of or in Munster
Áed Dub mac Colmáin (died 641?), bishop of Kildare
Áed Aired (died 698), king of Dál nAraide
Áed Róin (died 735), king of Dál Fiatach
Áed mac Colggen (died 738), king of Leinster
Áed Balb mac Indrechtaig (died 742), king of Connacht
Áed Muinderg (died 747), king of northern Uí Néill
Áed Find (died 778), king of Dál Riata
Áed Oirdnide (died 819), king of Ailech
Áed mac Boanta (died 839), probably king in Dál Riata
Áed of Scotland (died 878), king of the Picts
Áed Findliath (died 879), king of Ailech
Áed Ua Crimthainn (fl. mid-12th century), abbot of Terryglass
Aedh
Aedh mac Cathal Crobdearg Ua Conchobair, king of Connacht, 1223–1228
Aedh Muimhnech mac Felim Ua Conchobair, king of Connacht
Aedh mac Ruaidri Ua Conchobair, king of Connacht, 1228–1233
Aedh mac Aedh Breifneach Ua Conchobair
Áed Ua hOissín, First Archbishop of Tuam 1152
Aodh
Aodh, Earl of Ross (died 1333)
Aodh Mór Ó Néill (1540–1616), Irish earl and resistance leader
Aodh Mac Cathmhaoil (1571–1626), Irish archbishop and theologian
Aodh Rua Ó Domhnaill (1572–1601), Irish King, Lord and rebel leader
Aodh Mac Dónaill (Hugh McDonnell), Irish scribe
Aodhagan, Aodhagán, Aodhán, Aogán
All of these variants are AY-ə-GAWN or ay-GAWN. The spelling Aogán reflects the loss of the light dha syllable, pronounced [ə], but the o may be reinterpreted as [ə] even in that spellinɡ.
“Aodh (given name)” enters the record as male given name. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Aodh, given and name can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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This entry incorporates text from “Aodh (given name)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.