From Breathnach, simply ‘the Welshman’ — given to the Cambro-Norman knights who arrived alongside the first Norman invasion.
Cambro-Norman Origin · Root meaning ‘Welsh’
Walsh is an anglicisation of Breathnach, meaning simply ‘Welshman’ or ‘Briton’ — a byname given to the Welsh and Flemish knights who crossed with Strongbow's Norman force in 1169–70 and stayed.
A name that records an outsider's origin so plainly it never stopped saying it — and became, in Mayo, Kilkenny and beyond, one of Ireland's most common surnames regardless.
Irish form: Breathnach
