Meadhra as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Meadhra

What is the meaning of the name Meadhra ?

The baby name Meadhra is a Female name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced MAY-druh (IPA: /ˈmeɪdrə/).

Meadhra is Irish in Origin.

Meadhra is a rare Irish Gaelic masculine name derived from Middle Irish meadhair/meidhir, “mirth, joyousness,” giving the sense “merry, mirthful one.” It stands behind the hereditary surname Ó Meadhra, pronounced roughly oh-MARE-uh, and associated with Munster. A modern Irish spelling of the surname is Ó Meara (also seen as Ó Méara); the bare given name Meadhra is scarcely used today but is well-suited to revival.

In medieval Munster, members of the Ó Meadhra kindred were noted physicians and scholars serving the O’Briens of Thomond; later bearers include the 17th‑century doctor Dermot O’Meara and Napoleon’s physician Barry O’Meara. Anglicized variants stemming from the same root include O’Meara and Meara, and at times O’Mara/Mara; as a given name, Meara also appears unisex in modern use. Do not confuse Meadhra/Meara with the Irish word mara “sea” or méara “fingers”; the name’s core meaning remains “joy, mirth, cheerfulness.”

⚙ We can't find Meadhra in any of the birth registries or name datasets we track. It's the kind of name that tends to be rare, regional, or newly made up. Whatever the reason, hardly anyone else has it.