Neil

Neil is an anglicized form of the Irish Niall, generally interpreted as meaning ‘champion’, though some link it to a word for ‘cloud’. Niall of the Nine Hostages, a legendary high king of Ireland, was regarded as the ancestor of the Uí Néill dynasties. The name passed to the Norse as Njál and reached England by way of Norse and Norman settlers. It is commonly used in Ireland and among Irish communities abroad. Neil Armstrong, the American astronaut, was the first person to walk on the moon.