Meaning and background
The story behind Cunningham
Cunningham has Scottish and Irish surname histories. The Dictionary of American Family Names traces the Scottish branch to an Ayrshire province with a Celtic name of uncertain origin, explaining that its later spelling gradually resembled an English place-name ending. Irish branches instead adopted the surname for Gaelic family names based on Conn. The uncertainty matters: the modern ham ending should not be treated as proof of the Scottish name’s original meaning.
- Origin
- Scottish habitational surname of uncertain deeper Celtic origin; separately adopted for Irish Gaelic family names. Source
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About Cunningham
Recorded as a dog’s name
Cunningham appears in 11 dog licence records in the 2022 New York City dataset.
How to read this count
These records cover New York City and may count the same dog in more than one licence period. They are not a national popularity ranking.
Pronunciation and rhythm
/kʌnɪŋhæm/
US English sound sequence, converted from the CMU dictionary. Stress marks are shown separately.
Stress on the first syllable in the recorded US readings.
View dictionary notation
/kʌnɪŋhæm/ · primary stress on syllable 1K AH1 N IH0 NG HH AE2 M
These are US dictionary readings. Personal, regional and other language pronunciations may differ.
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Sources and research notes (2)
- New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene NYC Dog Licensing Dataset — all seven available extract years, retrieved 24 October 2026 — Recorded name spellings in NYC licence-period rows, extract years 2016–2018, 2022–2024 and 2026. Evidence selects one stated year per name. Annual snapshots overlap; never sum them as unique dogs. No national popularity, etymology or owner naming-intent claim.
- Carnegie Mellon University / CMU Sphinx maintainers CMU US English Pronouncing Dictionary — US English dictionary readings; not owner-specific or exhaustive multilingual pronunciation
References support the individual facts shown. A source link does not mean the entire profile has been verified.