Fergus (name)

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Fergus or Feargus is a popular Irish, Manx and Scottish given name. It is both the Old Irish spelling and the anglicised form of the modern Fearghus or Fearghas, meaning "man-strength" or "virility".[1] The name Fergus was a royal name amongst the Celts in Ireland and the Picts in Scotland. Although a relatively rare name, it is still very popular among the Scottish nobility and gentry. No fewer than three current Clan Chiefs are named Fergus.

As a surname, MacFhearhgais was Anglicised into Ferguson or Fergusson and this surname spread across Scotland but particularly in Ayrshire and Perthshire. The surnames Ferguson and Kerruish (from the genitive MacFhearghais) derive from it. In Ireland, the Ferris family of County Kerry derives its surname from the patronymic Ó Fearghusa.

Given name

Fergus (Fearghus)
Pronunciation /ˈfɜrɡəs/
Irish: [ˈfʲaɾˠɣəsˠ]
Scottish Gaelic: [ˈfɛrɛɣəs̪]
Gender Male
Origin
Word/Name Goidelic
Meaning "man-strength, virility".
Region of origin Ireland, Scotland, Isle of Man
Other names
Related names Fearghus, Fearghas

Saint Fergus

Sir Fergus

  • Sir Fergus Cumyn
  • Sir Fergus de Forbes, Chief of Clan Forbes
  • Sir Fergus Frederick Graham, 5th Bt.
  • Sir Fergus MacDowall of Garochloyne
  • Sir Fergus Macdougall of Makerston
  • Major Sir Fergus Matheson, 6th Bt., Chief of Clan Matheson
  • Sir Fergus Matheson, 7th Bt., Chief of Clan Matheson
  • Sir Fergus McMaster
  • Sir Fergus Montgomery
  • Sir Fergus Moss
  • Sir Fergus of Strathearn

Peers

  • Fergus, Lord of Galloway, followers fought at the Battle of the Standard (1138); his descendants became the earls of Carrick.
  • Fergus, 17th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorn, Chief of Clan Lyon, cousin of the Queen Mother
  • Fergus Mackay, Viscount Glenapp (future Earl of Inchcape)
  • Fergus Morton, Baron Morton of Henryton, judge

Other people with this given name

Fictional characters

  • Fergus I, fictional king
  • Fergus McDuck, Disney character
  • Fergus the Railway Traction Engine, character in Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends
  • Fergus the Fish, British preschoolers' cartoon series in the 1960s[4]
  • Fergus Cramer from the Nero Wolfe series
  • Fergus Malone, Rita's younger brother in Flushed Away
  • Fergus the Horse, internet cartoon character[5]
  • Fergus the Farmyard Dog, dog appearing in children's books by Tony Maddox
  • Fergus Shannon, dog appearing in children's books by David Shannon
  • Fergus the Hostler, a secondary character in the 1956 Robin Hood parody The Court Jester
  • Fergus Dargle, a character created by Bennigan's [6]
  • King Fergus, the leader of the foxes in the German film Der Sturmer
  • Fergus, the dog in the Citizen Dog comic strip
  • Fergus Cousland, older brother of the Human Noble player protagonist in the game Dragon Age: Origins.
  • Fergus "Game" McGame, a Sydney gangster from the third season of Australian TV series Underbelly.
  • Fergus, one of Shrek and Fiona's ogre triplets in Shrek the Third and Shrek: Forever After.
  • Fergus, a NPC from the game Mabinogi (video game) his occupation is a blacksmith.
  • King Fergus of the Scottish kingdom of DunBroch, husband of Queen Elinor, and father of Princess Merida in the 3D computer-animated movie, Brave.

Surname

Fergus
Family name
Pronunciation /ˈfɜrɡəs/
Irish: [ˈfʲaɾˠɣəsˠ]
Meaning "man-strength, virility".
Region of origin Ireland, Scotland, Isle of Man
Related names Ferguson, Fergusson, Kerruish
  • Alex Fergus (1899–?), Scottish professional association footballer
  • Dylan Fergus (b. 1980), American actor
  • James Fergus (1813–1902), miner, rancher, businessman and politician in Minnesota and Montana
  • John Fergus (c. 1700–c. 1761), Irish physician and man of letters
  • Keith Fergus (b. 1954), American professional golfer
  • Oris Fergus, Montserratian cricketer
  • Thomas Fergus (1815–1914), New Zealand politician
  • Tom Fergus (b. 1962), Canadian-raised American retired National Hockey League player

See also

References

  1. Old Irish fer (modern Irish fear), "man"; Old Irish gus, "force, vigour, impetuosity, fierceness" (modern Irish "courage, grit, initiative, self-assurance"). Dictionary of the Irish Language, Compact Edition, 1983, pp. 299-300, 373; Collins Pocket Irish Dictionary pp. 472, 497
  2. Popular Scottish forenames F-G
  3. Donald Whyte, Scottish Forenames: Their Origins and History, Birlinn Ltd., 1996. Original from Indiana University
  4. Fergus the Fish: Series (1960), New York Times
  5. http://www.fergusthehorse.com
  6. "Bennigan's Unleashes a Leprechaun on MySpace". Reuters. 15 January 2008. 
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