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Conor


Gender: Masculine
Language
: English
Etymology:
Conor is the English form of Conchobar, a Gaelic name meaning “Dog Lover.” The modern Gaelic form is Cnochúr.

History:
Conor (or Connor) was the name of a legendary Irish king, and has been in continual use in Ireland since. The Penguin Dictionary of First Names says it would have been originally bestowed as s nickname upon hunters, those who worked with dogs.

The name Conor has lately become highly popular in Ireland.

In the the U.S. the double N variant, Connor, is the more popular version.

The names Connor and Conor became common in the United States beginning in the 1970s, a time when “urr” names for boys (Cooper, Tyler, Hunter, etc.) and “new” Gaelic names were coming into fashion (Caitlin, Aidan, Devin, etc.).

Pronunciation: con-er

Alternates: Conar, Coner, Conner, Connor, Konner, Konnor.

Famous Bearers
:
Educators, Scholar, and Social Workers:
Conor Cruise O’Brien (1908-)
Irish historian.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census:
less than 0.004 % of males named Conor

0.029 % surnamed Conner
0.022 % surnamed O’Connor
0.011 % surnamed Connor
0.007 % surnamed Connors
0.003 % surnamed O’Conner
0.003 % surnamed Conners

Popularity of Conor:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1880-1976: N/A
1977: 936th most popular.
1978: 681st most popular.
1979: 652nd most popular.
1980: 620th most popular.
1981: 596th most popular.
1982: 577th most popular.
1983: 616th most popular.
1984: 580th most popular.
1985: 619th most popular.
1986: 557th most popular.
1987: 468th most popular.
1988: 445th most popular.
1989: 458th most popular.
1990: 470th most popular.
1991: 361st most popular.
1992: 301st most popular.
1993: 241st most popular.
1994: 307th most popular.
1995: 310th most popular.
1996: 317th most popular.
1997: 320th most popular.
1998: 330th most popular.
1999: 370th most popular.
2000: 364th most popular.
2001: 381st most popular.
2002: 387th most popular.
2003: 404th most popular.
2004: 450th most popular.

In Ireland...
1998: 1st most popular.
1999: 1st most popular.
2000: 3rd most popular.
2001: 4th most popular.
2002: 4th most popular.
2003: 4th most popular.

Selected Sources:
A Dictionary of First Names, Hanks and Hodges, 1990
The Penguin Dictionary of First Names, Pickering, 1999
The Academy of St. Gabriel (www.s-gabriel.org) - For information on medieval names.

The Social Security Administration Actuarial Note 139 (www.ssa.gov) - For popularity stats 1880-Present
The 1880 U.S. Census- For popularity stats 1850-1880, and other information (it is available on-line at www.familysearch.org)

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