Donoghue or O'Donoghue is an Irish surname, an Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Donnchadha ‘descendant of Donnchadh’, a personal name composed of the elements donn = ‘brown-haired man’ or ‘chieftain’ + cath = ‘battle’.
Spelling variations (which include an initial O' or omit it) include Donoghue, Donaghoe, Donoughe, Donaho, Donahoe, Donough, Donahue, Donahow, Doneghoe, Donehue, Donighue, Donoho, Donohoe, Donahugh, Donohough, Donohow, Donohue, Donaughue, Donaghie, Donaghy and many more.
The O'Donoghue name is first found in County Kerry, Ireland, where they held a family seat, O'Donoghue of the Glens, from very ancient times.
