... Ireland frequently used Neill, or Niall, and Scotland Niel, as it is there spelt, but it is far more surprising to meet with it among the Scandinavian races.  It is evidence that there must have been some considerable intercourse between Ireland and the North before the days of the piracies of the historical ages.  The old Irish legends constantly speak of Norway as Lochlinn, or the land of lakes, and show visits taking place between the inhabitants; and there are names to be found in both countries, borrowed from one another, too far back to be ascribed to the Norse invasions. (History of Christian Names, Yonge, 1884)