Celebrities with Irish roots who changed their surnames

Since the beginning of stardom in the early 20th century, many famous people have been proud to announce their Irish roots to the world. However, it is also common for stars to change their name to sound more appealing on the global stage or to avoid botched pronunciation.

Here are some stars who changed their Irish surnames.

Hozier

‘Andrew Byrne’ adopted the stage name Hozier that perfectly matched his illusive, indie-rocker persona. The Co Wicklow native grew up with a double barrel surname ‘Hozier-Byrne’ and chose to go by the more exotic sounding one when his music career took off in 2013.

Piers Morgan

The controversial journalist and TV presenter has strong Irish roots, and his real name is actually Piers Stefan O’Meara. His father, who passed away when he was 11, was from Co Offaly. When Pier’s mother eventually remarried, he adopted his stepfather’s name which was Morgan.

Emily Ratajkowski

The supermodel’s name is already difficult to pronounce for some, which might be why she dropped her other surname ‘O’Hara.’ The star used to spend summers in Ireland as a child and has previously talked about having Irish heritage on both sides of her family.

David Bowie

The pop icon had seriously deep Irish roots, despite his misleading name and very-British identity. His real name was David Robert Jones, and his great-grandmother- Mary Eileen Heaton- emigrated from Co Tipperary to Manchester. Bowie’s mother was named Peggy Burns, but David never adopted her name.

Dusty Springfield

The English singer whose fame peaked in the 1960s with the upbeat pop record “I Only Want to Be with You” was actually born to two Irish immigrant parents. Dusty was christened, Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O’Brien. She dropped all of her government names and instead chose a catchy, memorable one that would be accessible all around the world. After her death in 1999, her ashes were scattered off the Cliffs of Moher.

Bono

Perhaps one of the most recognizable stage names of all time belongs to Irishman Paul Hewson. “Bono” is an alteration of Bonavox, a Latin phrase which translates to “good voice.” He left his real name behind when U2 was formed back in the 1970s. Bono’s children, Eve and Elijah, have also chosen to pursue careers in show business, but have continued to use their real names.

Vogue Williams

The Irish TV personality and host of the hugely popular podcast ‘My Therapist Ghosted Me’ actually began her career as Vogue Wilson. She made her debut on Irish reality TV series Fade Street, which followed the lives of four Irish women in Dublin. When Vogue married Spencer Matthews, she kept her name, insisting that changing it again would be “such a headache.”

Enya

The reclusive musical icon couldn’t have a more Irish name. Eithne Pádraigín Ní Bhraonáin, became ‘Enya’ following advice from her producer, who believed the world would have trouble with the pronunciation. Enya is a native Irish speaker and ‘Enya’ is the anglicized version of her birth name.

Maureen O’Hara

Interestingly, the Technicolor Queen changed her name to an even more Irish sounding name at the beginning of her career. Born Maureen Fitzsimons, she changed her name under the guidance of English actor Charles Laughton. She allegedly told him, “I like Maureen FitzSimons and I want to keep it”, he replied, “Very well, you’re Maureen O’Hara.”

Elvis Costello

With a name like Declan Patrick MacManus, it is not difficult to figure out that the British rock star has strong Irish roots. The singer-songwriter was born in London, with parents of Irish descent.

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