Driscoll
An Anglicized Irish surname from O’Driscoll, meaning a descendant of an early Irish personal name of uncertain exact sense.
The #1,538 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 13,203 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Driscoll is the Anglicized form of Irish O’Driscoll, with the prefix O’ meaning “descendant of.” The second element is usually traced to an old Irish personal name traditionally written Dubhghall or a related form in older scholarship, though 19th-century authorities did not always agree on the exact source and spelling. In practice, the surname is best understood as an Irish clan name whose first element likely contains dubh, “dark” or “black,” but the precise original personal name remains somewhat uncertain.
History
The name is strongly associated with the O’Driscoll family of west Cork, where the clan was historically prominent, especially in coastal districts. English-language records often dropped the prefix O’, producing forms like Driscoll. The surname is well established in Ireland and in Irish diaspora communities, especially in North America.
Origin
Regions
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Fun fact
The surname is especially linked with the famous seafaring O’Driscoll clan of southwest Ireland.
From the historical record
“' teetotaller.' DRISCOLL. The Ii-ish O'Driscoll, sans 0. DRIVER, A carter or wagoner. Alio' la Driveres (a female wagoner!) occurs in H.E. DROOP. Ferguson says, O. Norse, drli'qn; sad. DRON. A parish in Fifeshire.”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom