Which is the older/more proper spelling Finian or Finnian

[racquet]

Just wondering. I have seen St. Finnian of Clonard with both spellings.

Just wondering which is the original, also if any one knows where this name derived from that would be great. TIA

[Panya]

AFAIK [my name books are on loan right now, so this is from memory], Finian is a variant of Finnian, which is an anglicised spelling of the Irish Fionáin. It's taken to mean "little fair one" -- a diminutive suffix added to the Irish Gaelic fionn [anglicised as finn], meaning "fair, white."

Personally, I'd spell it Finnian, since the root word has two Ns.

[Dark_Nephthys]

I was searching around and couldn't find Finian as a root spelling, but I found Finnian, derived from Old Irish finn "white" combined with a diminutive suffix. This was the name of several Irish saints.