Show ContentsFarah History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Farah

What does the name Farah mean?

The original Gaelic form of Farah was Ó Fearchair, derived from the word "fearchar," which means "man deer." 1

Early Origins of the Farah family

The surname Farah was first found in County Mayo (Irish: Maigh Eo) located on the West coast of the Republic of Ireland in the province of Connacht, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Farah family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Farah research. Another 95 words (7 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Farah History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Farah Spelling Variations

A name was often recorded during the Middle Ages under several different spelling variations during the life of its bearer because literacy was rare there was no real push to clearly define any of the languages found in the British Isles at that time. Variations found of the name Farah include Faragher, Faraugher, Fraher, Farraher and others.

Early Notables of the Farah family

More information is included under the topic Early Farah Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Farah migration to the United States +

Death and immigration greatly reduced Ireland's population in the 19th century. For the native Irish people poverty, hunger, and racial prejudice was common. Therefore, thousands left their homeland to seek opportunity in North America. Those who survived the journey and the quarantine camps to which they arrived, were instrumental towards building the strong developing nations of the United States and the future Canada. By far, the largest influx of Irish settlers occurred with Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s. These were employed as construction or factory workers. An examination of passenger and immigration lists has shown early immigrants bearing the name Farah:

Farah Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • John Farah, aged 36, who arrived in America in 1892 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Farah (post 1700) +

  • Sir Mohamed Muktar Jama Farah C.B.E., OLY, (b. 1983), British long-distance runner and the most successful British track athlete in modern Olympic Games history. He is the 2012 and 2016 Olympic gold medalist in both the 5000 m and 10,000 m. He also completed the 'distance double' at the 2013 and 2015 World Championships in Athletics. He was the second man in history, to win long-distance doubles at successive Olympics and World Championships, and the first in history to defend both distance titles in both major global competitions, he won the IAAF Diamond League title at 5000 metres. Appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2013, Knighted in 2017 as well as 1st place in the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award
  • Farah LeeAllen Fath (b. 1984), American soap opera actress
  • Farah Nasser, Canadian journalist with CablePulse24 as of February 22, 2010


  1. MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
  2. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)


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