duffy

n. a common last name that comes from Ireland or Scotland.

n. a surname of Irish or Scottish Gaelic origin, anglicized from Ó Dubhthaigh or Mac Dhuibhshíthe.

“The author Carol Ann Duffy was the first woman to become the UK Poet Laureate.”

“Genealogical records indicate that the Duffy family settled in this region during the mid-nineteenth century following the Great Famine.”

n. an old way of spelling 'duppy', which is a ghost or spirit in Caribbean stories.

n. an archaic variant of 'duppy', referring to a ghost or spirit in West Indian (particularly Jamaican) folklore.

“In the old stories, a duffy would haunt the silk cotton trees at night.”

“Early colonial accounts of Caribbean superstitions often transcribed the local term for a malevolent spirit as 'duffy' before the spelling 'duppy' became standard.”

Archaic · Dialect