From: ciaran@nospam.net   
      
   deb wrote:   
   > Hello all,   
   > I have a friend who is doing some ancestry work and is tracing through   
   > an Irish celtic line. She keeps seeing names with "na" in the middle of   
   > them. Can anyone tell me what this means?   
   > Thanks   
   > Deb   
   >   
      
   Here's a place name in Gaeilge that gives us a clue:   
      
   Brú na Bóinne (English: "Palace of the Boyne River") for the wonderful   
   large stone burial chambers and sun temples of our Gaeilge ancestors of   
   5,200 years ago. BTW don't let the pathetic evil little   
   history-rewriters convince you that our ancestors didn't build them ;-)   
      
   It is a belonging-singular-feminine (in this case) or plural form of the   
   definite article "an" (English: "the").   
      
   So 'na' is the same as 'the' in English. As far as surnames are   
   concerned the English-speakers often say 'The Bruces' or 'The Grahams'   
   for example. In Gaidhlig we say 'Na Brusaich' or 'Na Greumaich' for   
   those same names.   
      
   This holds for names throughout the Celtic nations (Eire, Alba, Mannin,   
   Cymru,Kernow and Breizh), e.g. Pen Ar Bed in Brezhoneg = Finisterre in   
   French = Headland of the World (End of the Land).   
      
   Slan   
      
   Ciaran   
      
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