McMenamin - The Name

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The goal of this page is to collect and share as much as possible about the origin of the name and the clan McMenamin.  I've started by putting down what I know.  E-mail me additional information or suggested corrections and I'll add it to the page, editing only as I feel appropriate.  Try to specify the source of your information, as I have.  In time, this page should grow into an interesting sharing of what we collectively know about the history of the name McMenamin.

"MacMheanma - MacVanamy; a variant of Mac Meanma, q.v. MacMeanma - M'Mannamie, MacManamy, MacMenamy, MacMenemy, MacMinamy; 'son of Meanma' (courage, high-spirits); a variant of Mac Meanman.   MacMeanman - MacManaman, MacManamon, MacMenamon, MacMenamen, MacMenemen, MacMenamin, MacMenimin....an old and still common name in TirConnell (Co. Donegal);  also in Thomond (Co. Limerick & Clare)." - From P. J. Wolfe's, Irish Names and Surnames.

"...MacMeanman takes the anglicized form MacMenamin in Co. Donegal and West Tyrone, where it is numerous, and MacManamon in Co. Mayo.  Many Tirconnell names are found in Mayo as a result of considerable migration in the early seventeenth century.  McMenamin must definitely be regarded as a Donegal name.  The "Annals of Loch Cé" record the death of two McMenamins, nephews of O'Donnell, in 1303, and the name appears in a list of the followers of O'Donnell of Tirconnell in 1601, as well as many times in the records of the diocese of Raphoe.  A variant of the name found in north Connacht is MacVanamy, while in Co. Tyrone it is sometimes abbreviated to McMenim." - from Dr. E. MacLysaght's, "More Irish Families."  MacLysaght also says that Merriman, Merryman, Merry, etc. are not "synonyms of McMenamin."

This surname (McMenamin) which originated in Co. Donegal is still found there and in west Tyrone as McMenamin while McManaman is the usual spelling in Co. Mayo.  There was considerable migration to Mayo in the early seventeenth century, following the defeat of Ulster by the English and "The Flight of the Earls," and this accounts for the presence of the surname in that county today. - from a Heraldic document, contributed by Patricia (McManiman) Orstad.

More on The Flight of the Earls:   "1601...Hugh O'Neill, Catholic Earl of Tyrone, backed by Spanish troops, attempts to halt English conquest of Ulster, but is defeated at the battle of Kinsale, near Cork.  1607...O'Neill and his ally, Rory O'Donnell, the Earl of Tyrconnell - along with many Ulster chieftains - escape to the Continent [and some to Mayo - see above] in the so-called Flight of the Earls.  Their lands are taken over by the English and Scottish settlers, who begin to turn Ulster into a bastion of Protestantism." - from "Dublin," by Brendan Lehane, contributed by Patricia (McManiman) Orstad.

Eight McMenamin name variations appear on the "Hearth Money Rolls" for Co. Donegal in 1665.  Nine variants of the name are listed for Co. Donegal in Griffith's Valuation and in the 1820-1830 Tithe Applotment Books. - Letter to me from the Chief Herald, Genealogical Offices, Dublin Castle, 1968.

The McMenamins seem to have originated in Donegal at least as early as the 13th Century.  Over the centuries, some migrated eastward into what is now know as Northern Ireland where the name often changed to a "y"-ending.   Some of these later migrated to Scotland and, in the last century or two, some migrated back to Ireland!  There are still quite a number in Scotland, particularly on the west coast around Glasgow.  I have some McMenemy friends in Co. Tyrone and Co. Londonderry who believe that the clan originated in Scotland! - Personal conclusions.

Why do many variants of the name McMenamin end in "y"?  Ted McMenomy has done a lot of research on this.  He likes best the theory that in the Gaelic dialect of Donegal, words ending in "n" are sometimes pronounced with a "slender" "n" so that McMenamin would end with an "eeen" sound with the "n" hardly heard.   He cites as an example, Letterkenny in northeast Donegal.  In Gaelic it is Leitir Ceaninn but anglicized it ends with a "y". - Contributed by Ted McMenomy.

How many McMenamins and variants of the name are there in Ireland and Northern Ireland? What counties are they in? After I wondered about that long enough, I went through all the telephone books issued in 1999 for both countries and found 261in Ireland and 138 in Northern Ireland. Not many out of a total population of 5.3 Million!  I also counted how many there were of each variant of the name and in what counties they were, and made the table shown below. A lot of the variations of the name were what I expected but some of the older recorded forms like Mac Menim and Mac Vanamy were not there while one very old form, Mac Meanmain, was. Some forms seen in America and elsewhere, such as McMenomey and McMenomy, were also missing.  There are 119 McMenamins listed in Donegal and there are 118  in Tyrone and Derry, mostly in the western parts. I think that strongly supports the theory that the clan originated in Tir Connaill. The 35 McManamons and 2 McMenamins in Mayo are consistent with the migration out of Tir Connail in the 1600’s. The large numbers in Dublin probably only confirm the attraction of that wonderful city.  One "caveat," I have cousins and friends in Donegal with quite substantial houses and farms who don’t have telephones. "What do I need with a telephone?" "Just a bother!" So my table below probably doesn’t include all the McM’s in Ireland and NI although the overall pattern is surely the same.  Finally, Lisa Govan of Glasgow searched the 2005/6 Glasgow phone books and her numbers and additional name variants have been added to the table below.  There are 131 McMenamins and variants of the name in Glasgow, more than any single county in Ireland or Northern Ireland and more than in Dublin!  The ferry ride from Northern Ireland across the Irish Channel to Scotland is short and beautiful and you will usually find the boat filled with Irish who regularly work, shop or visit there today.    

County Codes: Dn=Donegal, Sl=Sligo, My=Mayo, Le=Leitrim, Gl=Galway, Cv=Cavan,  Mn=Monaghan, Cl=Clare, Of=Offaly, Ws=Westmeath, Me=Meath, Lo=Louth, La=Laois, Kl=Kildare, Db=Dublin, Ck=Cork, Tp=Tipperary, Ca=Carlow, Wt=Waterford, Wx=Wexford, Ty=Tyrone, Dr=Derry, Fr=Fermanagh, An=Antrim, Dw=Down, Ar=Armagh, Gw=Glasgow

If your browser is Microsoft's Internet Explorer, the modified (by me:) Irish proverb just above will be a scrolling marquee.  If your browser is Netscape Navigator, you may just see the words.  Sorryyyy!

Questions/Comments let me know at rjcollins1@earthlink.net