Maher
An Irish surname, commonly understood as the anglicized form of O'Meagher, meaning a descendant of Meachair, 'the fair' or 'handsome.'
The #1,549 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 13,295 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Maher is generally treated as an anglicized form of Irish O'Meagher, also seen in older spellings such as O'Maugher. The underlying personal name is usually given as Meachair, glossed by older writers as 'the fair' or 'handsome.' In some older scholarship the related forms are grouped together under the same Irish family name tradition.
History
Older surname dictionaries describe Maher as an ancient Tipperary family name in Ireland. The name is well established in Irish records and later became common in English-language spellings, with Meagher and Maher often treated as variants of the same surname tradition. In the 19th and early 20th centuries it was noted among recurring Irish surnames in census and genealogical lists.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older sources link the surname to a word meaning 'handsome,' so Maher is one of those surnames whose origin carries a complimentary nickname sense.
From the historical record
“MAGUIRE = Mac Guire, q.v. MAHER (Celt.) for their. O'DfaheroxO'Meagh- er. Descendant of Meachair = the Fair, Handsome [Ir. and Gael. meachair\ MAHON I (Celt.) the Bear [Ir. and Gael. MAHONE J tnathghamhuin] MAH8Nr}f°'-°''^^'^''"«y''i-^- MAIDMAN (Eng.) i Meadow-Man lO.E.mckd mead(ow + mantt]”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)