Tracing the meaning of a name

[fonia]

Hi,
I'm new to this so here goes.

I'm trying to trace the meaning of my name 'FONIA' , I have been told that it is an irish name of gaelic origins and in gaelic means 'ring of gold' has anyone heard of it, how is it spelt in gaelic, and any other useful information would be a great help

thanks

[JNicLiam]

I'm trying to trace the meaning of my name 'FONIA' , I have been told that it is an irish name of gaelic origins and in gaelic means 'ring of gold' has anyone heard of it, how is it spelt in gaelic,

Hi Fonia

The Irish for a gold ring (as in ring worn on a finger) is fáinne óir - translated literally as ring fáinne and óir meaning of gold. The accent above the letter means it is long. So "fainne" is pronounced fawn-ya.
In the 1950s - 1970s in Ireland a number of people wore a small gold ring in their lapel referred to as a "fáinne". This symbolised that they could speak the Irish language and would be happy to converse in Irish to anyone who wished to use Irish with them. To be entitled to wear this "fáinne" a person had to do a test in spoken Irish with an official Irish body and show a considerable degree of fluency in the language and only then were they awarded the "fáinne". As I no longer live in Ireland I am not sure of the current situation with the "fáinne". But it did mean that the word "fáinne" became synonymous with gold ring.

[Peggy]

Hi Fonia,

Have you tried googling? Searching for Fonia and Ireland gets a bunch of references to "Fonia of Moray" who married The Lord of the Isles back in the 13th century (date according to one site I viewed.) The first few pages of hits didn't show any other Fonias. Interesting; I guess yours is far from being a common name in Ireland.

Peggy