What's in the name?
Gillian Rose
Gillian
Gillian is the feminine version of "Julian". This comes from the Roman name Julianus, which was derived from Julius.
This was the name of the last pagan Roman emperor, Julian the Apostate (4th century).
Rose
It actually just means simply "rose" like the flower (derived from Latin rosa).
It may have originally been a short form of names beginning with the Germanic element hros meaning "horse" or hrod, meaning ''fame'', for Gillian this will probably just mean a shortening from Rosalind meaning "pretty rose" or Rosaleen (her mum is called Rosaleen), which means "little rose".
And the fact that her she is named after her grandmother who was named Rose confirms this.
Shane Steven
Shane
Shane is a derived form of Seán, the
Irish form of John.
This means "God's grace".
John comes from two New Testament characters, both highly revered as saints. The first was John the Baptist, the forerunner of Jesus Christ.
The second was the apostle John, also supposedly the author of the fourth Gospel and Revelation.
This is probably the meaning behind Shane's name, as his family is catholic.
Steven
Steven is the English form of Stephen.
Which is derived from the Greek name Stephanos meaning "crown".
Saint Stephen was an early Christian martyr who was stoned to death, as told in Acts in the New Testament.
Another Saint Stephen is the patron saint of Hungary, the first Christian king of that country (10th century).
As well, this was the name of kings of England, Serbia, and Poland and ten popes.
The fact that this was the name of then popes could explain the reason for Shane's second name, also a catholic referal.
Nicole Rose
Nicole
Nicole is the French feminine form of Nicholas. Its source is Nikolaos (Nike means victory, loas means people), a Greek name meaning "Victorious people".
Saint Nicholas was a bishop who, according to legend, saved the daughters of a poor man from lives of prostitution.
He is also known as Santa Claus (from Dutch Sinterklaas), the bringer of Christmas presents.
He is saint of children. This last fact could descibe the reason for Shane & Gillian naming their first daughter Nicole.
But as a lot of Westlife fans would like to believe, it could also mean she's named after Shane's fellow-band member, and one of his best friends, Nicky (Nicholas) Byrne.
Rose
Nicole is probably named after her mum. This could be an tradition, seeing as Gillian's grandmother was called Rose, her mother Rosaleen, and Gillian herself has Rose as her second name as well.
Patrick Michael
Patrick
A form of the Roman name Patricius, which meant "nobleman" in Latin. He was a Romanized Briton who was captured and enslaved in his youth by Irish raiders. After six years of servitude he escaped home, but he eventually became a bishop and went back to Ireland as a missionary. He is traditionally credited with Christianizing the island, and is regarded as Ireland's patron saint. Saint Patrick's Day is celebrated in Ireland on March 17. There's also a fan's theory Patrick might be named after Shane's bandmate and friend Mark Feehily, whose middle names are Michael Patrick.
Michael
From the Hebrew name - meaning "who is like God?". Saint Michael was one of the seven archangels in Hebrew tradition and the only one identified as an archangel in the Bible. In the Book of Revelation in the New Testament he is portrayed as the leader of heaven's armies, and thus is considered the patron saint of soldiers. He could also be named after famous singer Michael Jackson (died at 51), who was Shane's idol.