Murphy Pronunciation /ˈ m ɜːr f i Language English Origin Language Irish Meaning 'sea warrior' Region of origin Ireland Other names Variant forms Murchadh, Murphey, MacMurphy, Morphy, O'Morchoe, O'Murphy, Ó Murchú, Murpy, Murphree [ 1]
Murphy is a surname ofIrish origin meaning 'sea warrior'.
Origins and variants [ edit ] The surname is a variant of two Irish surnames:Ó Murchadha /Ó Murchadh (descendant ofMurchadh ), andMac Murchaidh /Mac Murchadh Murchadh )[ 2] personal name Murchadh , which meant sea-warrior or sea-battler[ 3] muir meaning sea andcath meaning battle).[ 4]
According to historian C. Thomas Cairney, the O'Murphys were one of the chiefly families of theUí Ceinnselaig who in turn were a tribe from theDumnonii orLaigin who were the third wave ofCelts to settle inIreland during the first centuryBC .[ 5] John O'Hart in his 1892Irish Pedigrees; or, The Origin and Stem of The Irish Nation .[ 6]
Murchadh is reported to have been gripped with a boiling awful rage, an extreme elevation and greatness of spirit and intellect when he joined the middle of the action and prepared to assail the foreign invaders, the Danes, after they had repulsed theDal gCais . A gallantry and championship bird rose inside him and fluttered above his head and on his breath.[ 7]
In modernIrish ,Ó Murchú orMac Murchú rather thanMac /Ó Murchadha , is used.
Murphy is themost common surname in Ireland , the fourteenth most common surname inNorthern Ireland , and the sixty-fourth most common surname in theUnited States .[ 8]
Folklore and legends [ edit ] Folklore in some regions depicts Murphys as protectors of local communities and maritime activities. Tales of heroic deeds, bravery in battle, and protection of fishing routes appear in oral histories, particularly in counties Cork, Kerry, and Mayo. The Murphy name is sometimes linked to legends of sea battles and coastal defense, reinforcing itsMurchadh origin.[ 9]
Modern distribution and diaspora [ edit ] Murphy remains the most common surname in Ireland and is widespread throughout the Irish diaspora, especially in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.[ 10]
People with the surname [ edit ] Aaron Murphy (born 1988), English rugby league playerAndrae Murphy (born 1986), American football player and coachAnthony Murphy (cricketer) (born 1962), English cricketerArthur Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleAudie Murphy (1925–1971), American war hero and actorAustin J. Murphy (1927–2024), American politicianBarnes Murphy (born 1947), Irish Gaelic footballerBen Murphy (born 1942), American actorBenjamin Franklin Murphy (1867–1938), American politicianBernard D. Murphy (1841–1911), Canadian-born American politicianBos Murphy (1924–2000), New Zealand boxerBrian Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleBuddy Murphy , Australian professional wrestlerByron Murphy (born 1998), American football playerByron Murphy II (born 2002), American football playerCaleb Murphy (born 1999), American football playerCalvin Murphy (born 1948), American basketball playerCarl Murphy (born 1979), New Zealand snowboarderCarl J. Murphy (1889–1967), American journalist, publisher, civil rights activist, and educatorCharles Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleChris Murphy (born 1973), American politicianCiarán Murphy , Irish politicianCillian Murphy (born 1976), Irish actorColin Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleColm Murphy (1952–2023), Irish alleged suspect in the Omagh bombingConnor Murphy (born 1993), American ice hockey playerConor Murphy , Sinn Féin politician in Northern IrelandDale Murphy (born 1956), American retired baseball playerDale D. Murphy , professor at Georgetown UniversityDaniel Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleDarren Murphy (born 1985), Irish footballerDarren Murphy (Australian rules footballer) (born 1964)Darren Murphy (1961–2012), bassist with the British punk rock/post-punk bandWasted Youth Daryl Murphy , Irish football playerDavid Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleDerek Murphy (born 1968), American rapper better known asSadat X Dick Murphy (born 1942), American retired Republican politicianDonald E. Murphy (born 1960), American Republican politicianDonnie Murphy (born 1983), American baseball playerEddie Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleEdward Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleElliott Murphy (born 1949), American singer/songwriterErik Murphy (born 1990), American–Finnish basketball playerEverett J. Murphy (1852–1922), politicianFrancis Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleFrank Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleFred Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleGary Murphy (1972), Irish professional golferGary Murphy (1948), New Zealand cricketerGeoff Murphy (1938–2018), New Zealand filmmakerGeoffrey Mostyn Murphy (1922–2011), Australian boxer, better known asTommy Burns George Murphy (1902–1992), American dancer, actor, and Republican SenatorGerard Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleGerry Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleGlen Murphy (1957), British actorGrayson Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleHarold Lloyd Murphy (1927–2022), American judgeHenry Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleIsaac Murphy (1802–1882), Republican Governor of ArkansasIsaac Burns Murphy (1861–1896), American Hall-of-Fame jockeyIsaiah Murphy , a.k.a. Shinsaku Enomoto, (born 1998), Japanese basketball playerJack Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleJacob Murphy (born 1995), English footballerJames Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple people, people named James or JimmyJim Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleJohn Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleJoseph Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleJosh Murphy (born 1995), English footballerKevin Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleKieran Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleLambert Murphy (1885–?), American operatic tenorLandau Eugene Murphy Jr. (born 1974), American singer, winner of season 6 ofAmerica's Got Talent Larry Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleLawrence Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleLionel Murphy (1922–1986), Australian politician and juristLoren E. Murphy (1882–1963), American juristLuke Murphy (born 1999), American baseball playerMarc Murphy (footballer) (born 1987), Australian rules footballerMark Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleMartin Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleMatt Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleMaurice Murphy (actor) (1913–1978), American actorMichael Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple people, people named Michael, Mick or MikeMickey Murphy (born 1985), Gaelic footballerMiles Murphy (born 1967), Australian sprinterMyles Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleNicholas Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleNick Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleOakes Murphy (1849–1908), two-time Governor of Arizona TerritoryPat Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peoplePatricia Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peoplePatrick Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peoplePaul Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peoplePeter Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peoplePhil Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple people, people named Phil, Philip or PhillipRichard Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple people, people named Richard, some nicknamed DickRobert Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple people, people named Robert, Rob, Bob or BobbyRoger P. Murphy , American legislator and juristRyan Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleScott Murphy , American entrepreneur and politicianScott Murphy (video game designer) , a programmer behind theSpace Quest seriesSean Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleSebastian Murphy (Captain, Founding Father ofUtuado, Puerto Rico ), b. circa 1696 Shaun Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleShawn Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleStephen Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleStorm Murphy (born 1999), American basketball playerSydney Murphy (born 1960), Vincentian retired cricketerThomas Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple people, people named Thomas, Tom, or TommyTimothy Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple people, people named Timothy or TimTrent Murphy (2013), outside linebacker in the National Football League; played for the Washington Redskins and Buffalo BillsTroy Murphy , power forward for the Boston CelticsVincent B. Murphy , New York State Comptroller 1925–1926Vincent J. Murphy , Mayor of Newark 1941–1949Wendell H. Murphy , American politicianWilliam Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple people,Yale Murphy (1869–1906), American baseball playerYo Murphy (born 1971), American former football playerAshling Murphy (1998–2022), Irish teacher; suspected of being murderedAlexis Murphy , American murder victimAmee-Leigh Murphy Crowe (born 1995), Irish rugby sevens and union playerAnnie Murphy (born 1986), Canadian actressBrittany Murphy (1977–2009), American actressCamay Calloway Murphy (1927–2024), American educatorCarolyn Murphy (born 1975), American modelClaudia Quigley Murphy (1863–1941), American journalist, economic consultant, advisory counsel, authorDervla Murphy (1931–2022), travel writerDiana E. Murphy (1934–2018), American judgeDonna Murphy (born 1958), American Tony Award-winning actressElizabeth Murphy Moss (née Martha Elizabeth Murphy; 1917–1998), American journalistElizabeth Murphy Taaffe (née Elizabeth Yuba Murphy ; 1844–1875), American rancher, settler in CaliforniaErin Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleGail C. Murphy , Canadian computer scientistGillian Murphy (born 1979), principal dancer at American Ballet TheatreJess Murphy , New Zealand-born chef based in Galway, IrelandJill Murphy (1949–2021), British author and illustrator of children's booksJulie Murphy (singer) (born 1961), Welsh singerJulie Murphy (author) (born 1985), American novelistKelly Murphy (born 1977), American author and illustratorKelly Noonan Murphy (born 1974 or 1975), American politicianLaura Murphy , American politicianLaura W. Murphy (born 1955), American civil rights activist and lobbyistMadeline Wheeler Murphy (1922–2007), American community advocate and civil rights activistMargaret Mary Healy Murphy (1833–1907), American Catholic nunMary Murphy (disambiguation) , multiple peopleMaureen Murphy (ice hockey) (born 1999), American ice hockey playerPeta Murphy (1973–2023), Australian politicianRóisín Murphy (born 1973), Irish electronica singer, songwriter, and producerShaun Murphy (singer) (born 1978), a.k.a.Stoney , American singerStephanie Murphy (born 1978), Vietnamese-American politicianStephanie J. Murphy , American veterinary scientistTammy Murphy (born 1965), American bankerVashti Turley Murphy (1884–1960), American educator, community leader, and one of the founders ofDelta Sigma Theta Yi Lu Murphey , American electrical engineer^ Hanks, Patrick ; Hodges, Flavia (1988).A Dictionary of Surnames ISBN 0-19-211592-8 . Retrieved27 September 2025 – via Internet Archive.^ Brewer, Paul (2002).Ireland: History, People, Culture . Running Press. p. 351.ISBN 0-7624-1269-0 ^ MacLysaght, Edward (1991).The Surnames of Ireland . Irish Academic Press. p. 221.ISBN 0-7165-2366-3 ^ Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006),A Dictionary of First Names , Oxford Paperback Reference (2 ed.), Oxford University Press, pp. 352, 406,ISBN 0-19-861060-2 ^ Cairney, C. Thomas (1989).Clans and Families of Ireland and Scotland .Jefferson, North Carolina , United States, and London:McFarland & Company . pp. 78– 85.ISBN 0-89950-362-4 ^ O'Hart, John (1892).Irish Pedigrees; or, The Origin and Stem of The Irish Nation James Duffy & Benziger Bros. pp. 692– 707.OCLC 7239210 .^ Hennessey, W. M. (28 September 2020).The Ancient Irish Goddess of War . Library of Alexandria. p. 307.ISBN 978-1-6131-0276-3 ^ "Frequently Occurring Surnames from the 2010 Census" . Census.gov. Retrieved7 October 2024 .^ O'Sullivan, Seamus (1998).Irish Folktales and Family Legends . Cork University Press. p. 45. ^ "Top Irish Surnames Worldwide" .Ireland Information . Retrieved16 September 2025 .
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