Desmond
An Irish surname and given name tied to the old Gaelic kingdom of Desmond in Munster.
The #4,783 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 41,751 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Desmond comes from the name of an old Irish regional kingdom in south Munster. The place-name is usually explained from Irish Deas-Mhumhain, meaning “South Munster” or “southern Munster” — literally the southern part of Munster. As a surname, it is therefore a regional or territorial name, originally identifying people connected with that area rather than describing an occupation or personal trait.
History
In the historical sources, Desmond is treated as one of several surnames taken from Irish peerage or territorial titles, and it is linked especially with the Fitzgeralds, who were Earls of Desmond. The name also became established as a given name in English-speaking countries, probably through the prestige and familiarity of the Irish place-name. Modern bearers of Desmond in Ireland and the diaspora may come from either the surname or the given-name tradition.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The old province of Desmond covered much of southern Munster, which is why the name literally points to “the south.”
From the historical record
“of the ancestral patronymic than of territorial names, and therefore the number of this class Is extremely small. And even from that small number deductions must be made : First — of those names which are taken from peerage titles, such as Desmond, Galtrym, Howthe, Naas, and Swordes, which were but aliases for…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom