This famous surname is one of the most ancient names of Ireland.
Numerically, with some twenty thousand nameholders, it is also one of the
most popular, being twelfth in the table of numerical strength of Irish
surnames. Originally the Clan Doyle, derived from the pre 10th century
Gaelic 'Dhubh-ghall' (The dark stranger) was found mostly in the counties of
South-East Leinster, (Wicklow, Wexford and Carlow) and surprisingly it
largely remains so today, the name being rare in other regions. There is a
traditional belief that the ancestor who gave his name to the family was a
descendant of one of the Norsemen who settled in Ireland in pre-Norman
times, and this is probably partly true. However if the original nameholders
were dark, this suggests that a more likely explanation is that they were
either 'Celts' (Olde English fleeing the Anglo-Saxon invaders of Northern
England), or possibly Danes, who were much darker than the Norsemen, and who
had established themselves in Ulster, the West of Scotland, and the Isle of
Man. The surname is not included in the 'Gaelic Genealogies' which supports
the view of 'Viking' entry. Be that as it may, the 'Doyle's', the clan is
never known as O' Doyle, have made their mark on Irish history, and
particularly in the Catholic Church. The Scottish form of Doyle is (Mac)
Dougall, and this name was also used in the same way as a byname
distinguishing darker-haired Danes from fair-haired Norwegians. The
best-known bearer of the name is probably Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, (1859 -
1930), the creator of Sherlock Holmes, whilst an outstanding churchman was J
K L Doyle, Bishop of Kildare (1786 - 1834). The first recorded spelling of
the family name is shown to be that of O'Dubhghaill, which was dated 978, in
the "Annals of the Four Masters", during the reign of Brian Boru, High King
of Ireland, 940 - 1014. Surnames became necessary when governments
introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax.
Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to
"develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.
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