Shannon
Encyclopedia
Shannon is a Gaelic unisex given name. Alternative spellings include Shannen, Shanon, Shannan, Seanan and Siannon. Some variants of the name are Shan, Shania, Shana, Shanna and Shane.
. The meaning of the name Shannon most probably refers to an ancient Celtic deity identified with a river in Ireland
. The River Shannon
is the principal river of Ireland. 240 mi. (386 km) long flowing SW from Northern Ireland
to the Atlantic. The River Shannon presumably refers to the Goddess associated with the river, "Sionna" . The Irish goddess sought out the hazelnut
s of wisdom
which were believed to contain éigse
, the spirit and inspiration of poetry
. In Celtic mythology
, the search for wisdom was usually made by a woman who found it in a river or well. Always, she is changed by the knowledge
into a new being; a goddess.
There are several Irish legends
accounting for the name Shannon. A well called Connla's Well
existed under the sea that was filled with fish and either hazel or rowan trees
, depending on which legend
you are reading, dropped their nuts
or berries, depending again on the legend, into the well
. The salmon
that ate the nuts or the berries were thought to gain great knowledge and wisdom. This made the fish very desirable and fishermen worked very hard to get and catch these.
Women
were not allowed to eat these so-called "fish of knowledge or wisdom." However, a brave rebel female
named Shannon (spelled Sionnain in Gaelic), who some say is the daughter of the moon
, ignored this rule and caught and ate one of the fish. Immediately upon this infraction
, the well water rose up and carried Shannon to the Atlantic Ocean
, creating the River Shannon.
after 1940 as a female name. Prior to that it was common as a place name only, primarily in Ireland. The name reached its most popular period during the 1970s
in the United States for both males and females. It has since become common in Ireland as a unisex name
also. According to the 1990 U.S. Census
, Shannon is a very common first name for men (#317 out of 1220) and also a very common last name for both men and women (#679 out of 88799).
and Irish and unrelated to each other were Anglicized as Shannon.
Shane
is a shortened form of Shannon and comes from the Ulster
pronunciation of the name, whereas the names Shaun, Shawn or Sean
come from the way it is pronounced in Munster
, Leinster
and Connaught
.
Origin and meaning
Shannon means "small, wise one". The name Shannon is mainly used In EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. The meaning of the name Shannon most probably refers to an ancient Celtic deity identified with a river in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. The River Shannon
River Shannon
The River Shannon is the longest river in Ireland at . It divides the west of Ireland from the east and south . County Clare, being west of the Shannon but part of the province of Munster, is the major exception...
is the principal river of Ireland. 240 mi. (386 km) long flowing SW from Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
to the Atlantic. The River Shannon presumably refers to the Goddess associated with the river, "Sionna" . The Irish goddess sought out the hazelnut
Hazelnut
A hazelnut is the nut of the hazel and is also known as a cob nut or filbert nut according to species. A cob is roughly spherical to oval, about 15–25 mm long and 10–15 mm in diameter, with an outer fibrous husk surrounding a smooth shell. A filbert is more elongated, being about twice...
s of wisdom
Wisdom
Wisdom is a deep understanding and realization of people, things, events or situations, resulting in the ability to apply perceptions, judgements and actions in keeping with this understanding. It often requires control of one's emotional reactions so that universal principles, reason and...
which were believed to contain éigse
Éigse
Éigse: A Journal of Irish Studies is an academic journal devoted to the study of the Irish language and literature. It started life in 1923 as part of an initiative by the Senate of the National University of Ireland to use the Adam Boyd Simpson Fund for the publication of an Irish studies journal...
, the spirit and inspiration of poetry
Irish poetry
The history of Irish poetry includes the poetries of two languages, one in Irish and the other in English. The complex interplay between these two traditions, and between both of them and other poetries in English, has produced a body of work that is both rich in variety and difficult to...
. In Celtic mythology
Celtic mythology
Celtic mythology is the mythology of Celtic polytheism, apparently the religion of the Iron Age Celts. Like other Iron Age Europeans, the early Celts maintained a polytheistic mythology and religious structure...
, the search for wisdom was usually made by a woman who found it in a river or well. Always, she is changed by the knowledge
Knowledge
Knowledge is a familiarity with someone or something unknown, which can include information, facts, descriptions, or skills acquired through experience or education. It can refer to the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject...
into a new being; a goddess.
There are several Irish legends
Irish mythology
The mythology of pre-Christian Ireland did not entirely survive the conversion to Christianity, but much of it was preserved, shorn of its religious meanings, in medieval Irish literature, which represents the most extensive and best preserved of all the branch and the Historical Cycle. There are...
accounting for the name Shannon. A well called Connla's Well
Connla's Well
In Irish mythology, Connla's Well is one of a number of Otherworldly wells that are variously depicted as "The Well of Wisdom", "The Well of Knowledge" and the source of some of the rivers of Ireland.Much like the Well of Nechtan , the well is the home to the...
existed under the sea that was filled with fish and either hazel or rowan trees
Rowan
The rowans or mountain-ashes are shrubs or small trees in genus Sorbus of family Rosaceae. They are native throughout the cool temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with the highest species diversity in the mountains of western China and the Himalaya, where numerous apomictic microspecies...
, depending on which legend
The Boyhood Deeds of Fionn
The Boyhood Deeds of Fionn is a medieval Irish narrative belonging to the Fenian Cycle of Irish mythology. As its title implies, it recounts the boyhood exploits of Fionn mac Cumhaill, the cycle's central figure...
you are reading, dropped their nuts
Nut (fruit)
A nut is a hard-shelled fruit of some plants having an indehiscent seed. While a wide variety of dried seeds and fruits are called nuts in English, only a certain number of them are considered by biologists to be true nuts...
or berries, depending again on the legend, into the well
Water well
A water well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, boring or drilling to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The well water is drawn by an electric submersible pump, a trash pump, a vertical turbine pump, a handpump or a mechanical pump...
. The salmon
Salmon of Wisdom
The Salmon of Knowledge is a creature figuring in the Fenian Cycle of Irish mythology. This salmon was sometimes called Fintan, or Finntan, in ancient times and is sometimes confused with Fintan mac Bóchra who was also known as, "The Wise" and once transformed into a salmon...
that ate the nuts or the berries were thought to gain great knowledge and wisdom. This made the fish very desirable and fishermen worked very hard to get and catch these.
Women
Boann
Boann or Boand is the Irish mythology goddess of the River Boyne, a river in Leinster, Ireland. According to the Lebor Gabála Érenn she was the daughter of Delbáeth, son of Elada, of the Tuatha Dé Danann. Her husband is variously Nechtan, Elcmar or Nuada. Her lover is the Dagda, by whom she had...
were not allowed to eat these so-called "fish of knowledge or wisdom." However, a brave rebel female
Liath Luachra
Liath Luachra, the "Gray of Luachair", is the name of two characters in the Fenian Cycle of Irish mythology. Both appear in The Boyhood Deeds of Fionn, which details the young life and adventures of the hero Fionn mac Cumhaill....
named Shannon (spelled Sionnain in Gaelic), who some say is the daughter of the moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
, ignored this rule and caught and ate one of the fish. Immediately upon this infraction
Summary offence
A summary offence is a criminal act in some common law jurisdictions that can be proceeded with summarily, without the right to a jury trial and/or indictment .- United States :...
, the well water rose up and carried Shannon to the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
, creating the River Shannon.
Popularity
The name Shannon first became common in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
after 1940 as a female name. Prior to that it was common as a place name only, primarily in Ireland. The name reached its most popular period during the 1970s
1970s
File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...
in the United States for both males and females. It has since become common in Ireland as a unisex name
Unisex name
A unisex name, also known as an epicene name, is a given name that is often given to either a boy or a girl. Some countries, however, require that a given name be gender-specific or have enough names with male and female versions...
also. According to the 1990 U.S. Census
United States Census
The United States Census is a decennial census mandated by the United States Constitution. The population is enumerated every 10 years and the results are used to allocate Congressional seats , electoral votes, and government program funding. The United States Census Bureau The United States Census...
, Shannon is a very common first name for men (#317 out of 1220) and also a very common last name for both men and women (#679 out of 88799).
Related forms
The name Shannon and related names MacShannon and O'Shannon are Scottish surnames connected to Seanachaidh, a storyteller or historian. Other forms of the name are Gilshenan and Giltennen. It is also connected to O'Shawnessey or O'Shannahan. Several old Gaelic names both ScottishScottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
and Irish and unrelated to each other were Anglicized as Shannon.
Shane
Shane (name)
Shane is a masculine given name. It is an Anglicised version of the Irish name Seán, which itself is an Irish derivative of the name John. Shane comes from the way the name Seán is pronounced in the Ulster dialect of the Irish language, as opposed to Shaun or Shawn.Shane is also a popular surname...
is a shortened form of Shannon and comes from the Ulster
Ulster
Ulster is one of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the north of the island. In ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial...
pronunciation of the name, whereas the names Shaun, Shawn or Sean
Seán
Seán or Séan is an Irish language name. It is the Irish equivalent of the French Jean. Anglicisations of the name include Sean , Shane, Shayne, Shaine, Shaun, and Shawn...
come from the way it is pronounced in Munster
Munster
Munster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the south of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial purposes...
, Leinster
Leinster
Leinster is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the east of Ireland. It comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Mide, Osraige and Leinster. Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the historic fifths of Leinster and Mide gradually merged, mainly due to the impact of the Pale, which straddled...
and Connaught
Connacht
Connacht , formerly anglicised as Connaught, is one of the Provinces of Ireland situated in the west of Ireland. In Ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for...
.
See also
- Shannon (disambiguation)
- Fionn (400-1500), mythical hunter-warrior of Irish mythology
- Shannen DohertyShannen DohertyShannen Maria Doherty is an American actress, producer, author and television director, known for her work as Heather Duke in Heathers , as Brenda Walsh in Beverly Hills, 90210 and its spinoff series 90210, and as Prue Halliwell in Charmed .-Early life and career:Doherty was born in Memphis,...
(born 1971), American actress known for Beverly Hills, 90210 and Charmed. - ShannonMarty WildeMarty Wilde is an English singer and songwriter. He was among the first generation of British pop stars to emulate American rock and roll, and is the father of pop singers Ricky Wilde, Kim Wilde and Roxanne Wilde.-Career:Wilde was performing under the name Reg Patterson at London's Condor Club in...
(born 1939), English singer and songwriter Marty Wilde - ShannonShannon (singer)Shannon is an American singer. She is best known for her 1983 million-selling record, "Let the Music Play". The record re-defined the electro funk sound that would eventually be called freestyle music.-Biography:...
(born 1958) American singer Brenda Shannon Greene - Shannon (born 1975), female American wrestler
- ShannonShannon (horse)Shannon , named Shannon II in America, was an outstanding Australian Thoroughbred racehorse who was inducted into the Hall of Fame. He created new racecourse records in Australia before he was sold to an American buyer who exported him to California in 1948...
(1941–1955), Australian Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse - Shannon BramerShannon BramerShannon Bramer is a Canadian poet . Born in Hamilton, Ontario, she attended York University before publishing her first book, suitcases and other poems, which won the Hamilton and Region Arts Council Book Award. Over the next few years, she resided in Guelph, Ontario, where she helped found the...
(born 1973), Canadian poet - Shannon ElizabethShannon ElizabethShannon Elizabeth is an American actress and former fashion model. Elizabeth is well known for her roles in comedy films such as Scary Movie, American Pie, and Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back. She is also well known for her work in horror films such as Thirteen Ghosts, Cursed, and Night of the Demons...
(born 1973), American actress - Shannon LucidShannon LucidShannon Matilda Wells Lucid is an American biochemist and a NASA astronaut. At one time, she held the record for the longest duration stay in space by an American, as well as by a woman...
(born 1943), American biochemist and a NASA astronaut - Shannon SharpeShannon SharpeShannon Sharpe is a former American Football tight end who played for the Denver Broncos and Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. Sharpe is known for his creative commentary and trash talking. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and inducted on August 6, 2011...
(born 1968), American football player - Claude Shannon (1916–2001), American mathematician and electronic engineer
- Karissa and Kristina ShannonKarissa and Kristina ShannonKristina and Karissa Shannon are American glamour models, Playboy Playmates, and twin sisters.-Career:...
(born 1989), twin sisters, Playboy Playmates - Molly ShannonMolly ShannonMolly Helen Shannon is an American comic actress best known for her work as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1995–2001 and for starring in the films Superstar and Year of the Dog. More recently, she starred in NBC's Kath & Kim from 2008–2009 and on the TBS animated series Neighbors from...
(born 1964), American actor - Shannon AirportShannon AirportShannon Airport, is one of the Republic of Ireland's three primary airports along with Dublin and Cork. In 2010 around 1,750,000 passengers passed through the airport, making it the third busiest airport in the Republic of Ireland after Dublin and Cork, and the fifth busiest airport on the island...
(established 1942), the fifth busiest airport in Ireland - Shannon Free ZoneShannon Free ZoneShannon Free Zone is a , international business park adjacent to Shannon International Airport, County Clare, Ireland which is 18 km from Ennis and 20 km from Limerick city. Businesses based on the site enjoy a very attractive tax package on their profits. This has served to attract a...
(established 1959), International business park adjacent to Shannon International Airport, County Clare, Ireland - HMS ShannonHMS ShannonNine ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Shannon, after the River Shannon, the longest river in Ireland:*HMS Shannon was a 28-gun sixth-rate launched in 1757 and broken up 1765....
, nine ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS Shannon - USS ShannonUSS Shannon (DM-25)USS Shannon was a Robert H. Smith-class destroyer minelayer in the United States Navy. She was named for Marine Colonel Harold D. Shannon....
(1944–1970), Robert H. Smith-class destroyer minelayer in the United States Navy