The prefix "tobar" simply means well in Irish, and "Dermot" points to a personal name, most likely a local saint or venerated figure whose identity has otherwise slipped from the written record. Holy wells of this kind were focal points of popular devotion for centuries, often visited on a patron saint's feast day in a practice known as a "pattern" (from the Irish "pátrún", meaning patron), during which pilgrims would walk a set circuit, pray at specific stations, and sometimes leave offerings of cloth or coins.

The particular history of Toberdermot, including who Dermot was, when the site was in active use, and what physical form it takes today, remains to be fully documented. What can be said is that Galway's landscape holds a remarkable density of such wells, many of them still quietly maintained by local communities long after formal religious devotion has faded elsewhere. The townland name Fawnarevagh itself likely derives from the Irish, though its precise meaning is unclear without further local study.