McGinn Coat of Arms, Family Crest and McGinn Family History

McGinn Family History

The ancient origin of the name McGinn was found in the irishsurnames.com archives.

Surnames developed a wide number of variants over the centuries. Many different spelling variations of the same name can be traced back to a single original root. Also, when a bearer of a name emigrated from Ireland it was not uncommon that their original name would be incorrectly transcribed in the record books upon arrival at their new location. Some names have dozens of spelling variations. Some Surnames were also altered over the years based on how they sounded phonetically, by their sound, and depending on the prevailing political conditions it may have been advantageous to change a name from one language to another. This was especially so in Ireland where most Gaelic names were 'anglicized' at some stage.

Variants of the name McGinn include McGinne, Ginn, McGing, Ging, McKing and Maginn. This name in Irish is Mag Fhinn and the latter variants are the anglicized form of this. This sept came from Ulster. A sept or clan was a collective term describing a group of persons whose immediate ancestors bore a common surname and inhabited the same territory. In the 1659 Census the name is recorded as MacGinne, being listed as one of the principal Irish names in the barony of Oneeilland, County Armagh. The spelling McGing, Ging and McKing are mostly found in the Counties of Mayo, Leitrim and Galway, these being a branch of the Ulster sept that moved there centuries ago. A famous bearer of the name was William Maginn (1793-1842), who went to London and became one of the foremost personalities in the literary and journalistic field. Edward Maginn (1802-1849) was Bishop of Derry. The McGinn family crest (or coat of arms) came into existence many centuries ago. The process of creating these coats of arms began as early as the eleventh century although a form of Proto-Heraldry may have existed in some countries prior to this, including Ireland. The new more formalized art of Heraldry made it possible for families and even individual family members to have their very own family crest, coat of arms, including McGinn descendants.