Niall

N1I1A1L1L1
/ˈnaɪəl//niːl/

proper noun

A male given name from Irish or Scottish Gaelic used in Ireland and Scotland since the Middle Ages.

OriginIrish Niall ← Scottish Gaelic Niall ← Old Irish Níall →
Less commonScrabble 5
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Meanings

proper noun
  1. A male given name from Irish or Scottish Gaelic used in Ireland and Scotland since the Middle Ages.

    Aberdeen have confirmed, external Ash Taylor and Lawrence Shankland will follow Ryan Jack, Niall McGinn and Peter Pawlett in leaving the club this summer.

    2017 May 31, “Aberdeen: Ash Taylor & Lawrence Shankland join players leaving Pittodrie”, in BBC Sport, archived from the original on 24 May 2021, retrieved 02 Sep 2026

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₃neyd-“to revile”
  2. Old IrishNíall
  3. Scottish GaelicNiall
  4. IrishNiall
  5. EnglishNiall

Borrowed from Irish Niall or Scottish Gaelic Niall, ultimately from Old Irish Níall, of uncertain original meaning. Suggestions include nél (“cloud”) and nïa (“champion”), which is from Proto-Indo-European *h₃neyd- (“to revile”). Doublet of Neil.

More words from Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Old Irish

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with Niall

realmobilefeeldealtrialsteelappealwheelmiledialsealmealNeilrevealreelstealdenialkyleheelpeelhealnealsteelerepeal
All rhymes →

Anagrams

NaillnillaLlani
Cite this entry
APA

Niall. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Niall

MLA

“Niall.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Niall. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Niall,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Niall.

Source: Niall on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.