Luck of the Irish guides parents to names
WHAT’S YOUR NAME
Dad’s Irish first name — Fintan — is unusual here in Canada. His family members also have Gaelic names — even some “insanely Irish names.” So when Fintan O’Carroll, himself born in County Cork, Ireland, and his wife, Jennifer, named their children, they kept to his roots. “His family has all these strong, Gaelic names — insanely Irish names,” says Jennifer. “I’m okay with Irish names, I just wanted to make sure we chose one you could pronounce, one that his teachers wouldn’t stumble over, and I wanted a Canadian spelling.” Rogan Donovan O’Carroll was born Sept. 3, 2008, two weeks late and weighing 8 lbs., 7 oz. Rogan means red-haired — although their Rogan has dark brown hair. Middle name Donovan honours Fintan’s late mother, whose maiden name was O’Donovan. Son number two is Quinn Patrick, born July 18, 2010 in Mississauga, where the family lives. “Rogan is very husky, he got the dark hair — and for everything Ro- gan is, Quinn is not. Quinn is shy; he has light, light, light blond hair.”
Quinn is traditionally a surname in Ireland, which Fintan’s family has had to adjust to. “It threw his whole family off. They still just don’t get it,” Jennifer says with a laugh. The O’Carrolls belongs to the Ireland Supporters Club in Mississauga and are very involved with the Irish community.
Quinn’s nickname is Q; Rogan’s is Rogey or Rogasaurus Rex “because he’s a wrecking ball. He’s 3 years old and 55 pounds and he’s a foot taller than everyone in the class.”
While Jennifer likes the way the name Rogan is spelled, she “also wanted a man’s name — a name that he could grow into. All the men in my family are well over 200 pounds, well over 6 feet.”
Her boys are already on their way to fulfilling that tradition — they’re already at the top of the height and weight charts for their ages. “Quinn is in the 95th percentile . . . Rogan is up by the logo on the paper.” Did you give your child an interesting