Niall is a male

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a ...

of Irish origin. The original meaning of the name is unknown, but popular modern sources have suggested that it means "champion" (derived from the

Old Irish Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic ( sga, Goídelc, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ga, Sean-Ghaeilge; gd, Seann-Ghàidhlig; gv, Shenn Yernish or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic/Gaelic language for which there are extensive writte ...

word ''niadh''),. According to John Ryan, Professor of Early and Medieval History at

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 33,284 student ...

, Niall "seems to be so ancient that its meaning was lost before records began."

Notable people with the name Niall

;Medieval times *

Niall of the Nine Hostages Niall ''Noígíallach'' (; Old Irish "having nine hostages"), or Niall of the Nine Hostages, was a legendary, semi-historical Irish king who was the ancestor of the Uí Néill dynasties that dominated Ireland from the 6th to the 10th centurie ...

, High King of Ireland who lived in the early-to-mid 5th century AD * Niall Caille, High King of Ireland in the 9th century AD ;Modern times * *

Niall Carolan Niall Carolan (born 18 April 2002) is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for Cuchulainns and the Cavan county team. Playing career Club Carolan joined the Cuchulainns at a young age and joined the club's senior team in 2020. Inter-county Mi ...

(b. 2002), Irish Gaelic footballer * Niall Ferguson (b. 1964), Historian and the

Laurence A. Tisch Laurence Alan Tisch (March 5, 1923 – November 15, 2003) was an American businessman, investor and billionaire. He was the CEO of CBS television network from 1986 to 1995. With his brother Bob Tisch, he was part owner of Loews Corporation. ...

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professo ...

of History at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...

Niall Horan Niall James Horan ( ; born 13 September 1993) is an Irish singer-songwriter. He rose to prominence as a member of the boy band One Direction, formed in 2010 on the singing competition '' The X Factor''. The group released five albums and went ...

(b. 1993), a member of the British-Irish boy band

One Direction One Direction, often shortened to 1D, are an English-Irish pop boy band formed in London in 2010. The group are composed of Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and previously Zayn Malik until his departure from the g ...

* Niall Mackenzie (b. 1961), Scottish former professional motorcycle road racer *

Niall Matter Niall Matter ( ; born October 20, 1980) is a Canadian-American actor. Following recovery from a serious accident sustained while working on an oil rig, Matter chose to pursue a full-time acting career. He received his first significant break in ...

(b. 1980), Canadian actor *

Niall McCready Niall McCready is an Irish former Gaelic footballer who played for Aodh Ruadh and the Donegal county team. He won an Ulster Under-21 Football Championship medal with Donegal in 1995. He started the first game of Brian McEniff's last spell a ...

, Irish Gaelic footballer *

Niall McGinn Niall McGinn (born 20 July 1987) is a Northern Irish professional footballer, who plays for Scottish Championship club Dundee. McGinn has also played for Dungannon Swifts, Derry City, Celtic, Brentford, Aberdeen (two spells) and South Korean ...

(b. 1987), Northern Irish footballer * Niall Moran (b. 1998), Irish hurler * Niall O'Brien (b. 1981), Irish cricketer * Niall O'Donnell (b. 1998), Irish Gaelic footballer * Niall Quinn (b. 1966), Irish former international footballer and chairman of the English club Sunderland A.F.C. Fictional characters * Hunter Niall from ''Sweep'' * Niall Brigant from '' The Southern Vampire Mysteries'' * Niall MacDonnell from the Honorverse * Niall Rafferty from ''

Hollyoaks ''Hollyoaks'' is a British soap opera which began airing on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was created by Phil Redmond, who had previously conceived the soap opera '' Brookside''. Since 2005, episodes have been aired on sister channel E4 a ...

'' * Niall from '' Xenoblade Chronicles 2'' * Pedron Niall from ''

The Wheel of Time ''The Wheel of Time'' is a series of high fantasy novels by American author Robert Jordan, with Brandon Sanderson as a co-author for the final three novels. Originally planned as a six-book series, ''The Wheel of Time'' spans 14 volumes, in ad ...

References

{{given name Irish-language masculine given names English masculine given names

Notable people with the name Niall

See also

References