I'm just wondering what the Irish version of Julian is. After Googling it, I came across the Gaelic name of Julianstown, Báile Iúiliáin, but I'm thinking this would probably be the genitive case. Would this mean that the nominative case would be Iúilián (no final 'i'?)

Any help with this and the pronunciation (OOL-yawn?) would be appreciated.

Baile Ghilleáin, I guess.
Pronounced roughly "BAH-leh YILL-yahn".

It is important to remember that a single l followed or preceded by i isn't pronounced "ly" (Iúileán, if it exists, cannot be "OOL-yawn", but rather "OOL-awn"). It has to be a double l to be "ly".

I'm a firm believer in NOT translating names. I don't want my friend Mr. Tanaka to be called Mr. Middle-of-the-paddy-field.
Is breá liom ainmneacha a thuiscint ach má dhéanaimid iarracht ainmneacha a athrú, caillfimid an bhrí. When Irish place names were anglicized, people began to forget what they meant.
Londonderry is a form of linguistic conquest. First we lost Doire to Derry and then, to add insult to injury, London was pushed on it. Instead of honoring a sacred element of nature (the oak) we now have sounds and few know what they mean.
Brian Friel's translations comes to mind here. Let's not be guilty of that sin.
Sin mar a fheicimse é, ar aon nós.

Doire to Derry is not a translation but a transliteration. If it was a translation than we'd have something like Oakland or Oakwood. Derry was the English way of rendering the sounds, just as Shaun for Seán, etc.

Historically the most common form of this name was Gilleán.

Baile Iúiliáin has some variation including versions beginning in gh.

http://www.logainm.ie/Iomhanna/box%20120_ath/po38422_1.JPG

(Message edited by seánw on June 26, 2010)

if one was to write the name "saville" as gaeilge... as in jimmy saville the eponymous entertainer i remember in my youth, would one write it as "Saibhal" as gaeilge?

Dia dhaoibh go léir.
Ceapaim go bhfuil "Gilleán" an Gaeilge ceart ar "Julian",ach déanann an t-ainm "Iúilián" beagáinín ciall freisin.Uaireanta,bíonn breis agus ainm Gaeilge amháin ar ainmneacha,mar shampla:

Jason = Séasán,Iasan,Iasón
Gerard = Gearard,Gearóid
David = Dáithí,Daibhéid
Helen = Léan,Aoileann,Eibhlín
Jack = Seaic,Siacas

Tá súil agam go cabhraíonn sé sin leat ná tusa a chur trína chéile.

if one was to write the name "saville" as gaeilge... as in jimmy saville the eponymous entertainer i remember in my youth, would one write it as "Saibhal" as gaeilge?

Since he spoke English, you'd use Jimmy Savile. Usually with recent people, you'd use their name in their language in common roman script, unless they had an Irish name.

Somehow Séamus Ó Saibheall doesn't do it for me. Sin ráite, is maith an smaoineamh "Shocraigh Séamus dom é" a chur ar an taobh eile don suaitheantas!

Séamus Sabhaill, b'féidir?

Chuala me blianta ó shoin nach cuirtear Ó nó Mac roimh ainmneacha Sasanaigh -an fior é? -
(féac "Riocard Bairead" "Pearse Hutchison" is araile)

eadaoin

I think privately -- among ourselves -- and for no one's amusement but our own we could have fun in Irish with some famous names: Máiréad Mhic an Tuíodóra mar shampla; an Sceach (nach raibh dán fada ag Raifteirí "Seanchas na Sceiche").

Raifteirí itself comes from "Reachtaire" I think.

Obviously in serious formal registers of speech respect must be shown. Think however of the extraordinary strength of Dublinese (the English of Dublin oldest and poorest areas) they create new names by the newtime: Shaymo (Séamas); Daymo (Damian); Joxer, the Jazzer, etc not to mention "The Spire in the Mire", "The Fluzi in the Jacuzi".

I heard an alternative to "Do you think I came down in the last shower of rain?" (that I'm naive): "Do you think I came up the Liffey on a sponge!" We need that ability in Irish. Civil servants used have fun with Irish once upon a time: "Tá an Liam amuigh ina sheasamh!" (The bill is out standing.) Don't knock it. That's what people do with a living language. They play with words and look for euphony (you phony pony!) Gabriel Rosenstock does it in Irish. We need 1001 such wordsmiths.

Tá a fhios agam go bhfuil "Sabhaois" an Gaeilge ar an tsloinne "Savage".I wonder if something like "Sabhaoil" could be used for Saville??? Níl ann ach smaoineamh beag.

Taidhgín, I don't want to knock it. I like it as a joke but to take it seriously would be to make a malaí out of it.

Taidhgín,
Yes, that's the fun stuff. And the Irish (some) are famous for it. I love "Do you think I came up the Liffey on a sponge!"

I think people need to feel comfortable to be able to play and make mistakes and learn from them. I think the "mercy" message is better these days than the "justice" message. And what I mean is, I think its better to just get in and have fun, sincere fun, more than stifling development though constant grammatical bickering and the like. Most people don't bicker about English even though people break rules up and down the green isle all day long.

(And I am not saying we don't need to learn the grammar and the hard stuff. I know this from personal experience, but just don't kill the joy!)

thanks guys I have a good friend in england called tom saville. he's always texting me some witty cockney banter and is interested in irish-he is a hibernophile and he asked me what his name would be as gaeilge...and i replied tom saville! (as someone else has said)....but he was serious for once he wanted to know as he wanted to learn how to pronounce certain words in irish-starting with his name...fairplay to him. saibheall he is from now then!