Liam:
Liam is short for Uilliam, which is the gaelic form of William. It also happens to be my brothers name which is why we gave the name to our first bear. Uilliam is a rare name now but the shortened version Liam is quite popular in Ireland.
Sinéad is the gaelic form of Jane. It means "God is gracious". Sinéad the bear is lucky in sharing her name with the fabulous Sinéad O'Connor.
And a short note on my own name, Ríona:
I think my Mum has named many bears after me when I was little. At the time the bears were sold in The House of Ireland and I hope they're all gone to good homes. Ríona means queenly derived from the old gaelic word for queen Rioghan. The english equivalent would be Regina. In ancient Ireland the High Queens were extremely powerful. There are many stories about them, any Irish person worth their salt can tell you about the fearsome Queen Maedhbh and her battle over the brown bull of Cooley.
Slán go fóill,
