Meanings
- A surname from Irish.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*-eh₂kos, *-eh₂ḱos
- Proto-Celtic*-ākos
- Old Irish-ach
- Proto-Celtic*keiliyos
- pglᚉᚓᚂᚔ“follower, devotee”
- Old Irishcéile
- IrishÓ Céileachair“descendant of Céileachar”
- EnglishKelleher
From Irish Ó Céileachair (“descendant of Céileachar”), from the male given name Céileachar (literally “spouse-loving”), from céile (“spouse, companion”), from Old Irish céile, from Primitive Irish ᚉᚓᚂᚔ (celi, “follower, devotee”, genitive), from Proto-Celtic *keiliyos; + -ach (“of”, relation-forming suffix), from Old Irish -ach, from Proto-Celtic *-ākos, from Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂kos, *-eh₂ḱos.
More words from Irish, Old Irish, pgl
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Kelleher. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Kelleher
“Kelleher.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Kelleher. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Kelleher,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Kelleher.
Source: Kelleher on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.