Mac Murchadha
Encyclopedia
Origins
Mac Murchaidh was the surname of a branch of the Cenél nEógainCenél nEógain
Cenél nEóġain is the name of the "kindred" or descendants of Eógan mac Néill , son of Niall Noígiallach who founded the kingdom of Tír Eoghain in the 5th century...
. They were originally native to the district of Muintir Birn (now in the barony of Dungannon
Dungannon
Dungannon is a medium-sized town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is the third-largest town in the county and a population of 11,139 people was recorded in the 2001 Census. In August 2006, Dungannon won Ulster In Bloom's Best Kept Town Award for the fifth time...
) and Tellach Ainbhith (in barony of Strabane
Strabane
Strabane , historically spelt Straban,is a town in west County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It contains the headquarters of Strabane District Council....
) in Tír Eoghain, where they were chiefs of Siol Aodha. They take their surname from a Murchad of Siol Aodha, who was alive in the 10th or 11th century.
Pedigree
The Clann Birnn's pedigreePedigree
Pedigree can refer to the lineage or genealogical descent of people, whether documented or not, or of animals, whether purebred or not. This can include:-Concepts and documents:...
is Bern mac Ruadrí mac Murchad mac Máel Dúin mac Áeda Alláin
Áed Allán
Áed Allán was an 8th century Irish king of Ailech and High King of Ireland. Áed Allán was the son of Fergal mac Máele Dúin and a member of the Cenél nEógain, a branch of the Northern Uí Néill....
.
Their corelatives are Mac Ruaidhrí (rendered as MacCrory, MacRory, Rodgers, Rogers) and Ó Firghil (now Friel, Freel).
Mac Murchaidh of Muintir Birn
The earliest reference to the name occours in 1172, when Maol Maire Mac Murchadha toiseach Muinntire Birn do mharbhadh la h-Aedh Mac Aenghusa agus la Cloinn Aeda do Uibh Eachdach Uladh/Maol Maire Mac Murchadha, Lord of Muintir Birn, was slain by Aedh Mac Aenghusa and the Clann-Aodha of Uíbh Echach Uladh.An Feadha:The Fews
However, they were forcibly dispossed and driven out by their more powerful Ó Néill kinsmen, sometime in the 13th century. They subsequently settled in the highlands of south Armagh, ousting families such as Garvey, Hanratty and Callaghan.Over the course of the next two hundred years, the Clan Aedh Buidhe O'Neill's (see O'Neill dynasty
O'Neill dynasty
The O'Neill dynasty is a group of families that have held prominent positions and titles throughout European history. The O'Neills take their name from Niall Glúndub, an early 10th century High King of Ireland from the Cenél nEógain...
) would expand into The Fews and make the Mac Murchaidh their vassals again. By the end of the 15th century they were centered on Dunreavey Wood. A fiant
Fiant
The word Fiant is an abbreviation of Fiant litterae patentes, which means Let letters patent be made. These were warrants to the Court of Chancery in Ireland, which was the authority for the issue of letters patents under the Great Seal...
of 1602 names some one hundred and seventy free clansmen of the Fews, of whom thirty-five were Mac Murchaidh's.
The Plantation and after
The townlands of Cashell and Legacroon in the barony of Orier were granted to Mac Murchaidh's c. 1610, but were seized by the time of Down SurveyDown Survey
The Down Survey, also known as the Civil Survey, refers to the mapping of Ireland carried out by William Petty, English scientist in 1655 and 1656....
. There were seven Mac Murchaidh landholders in 1659, and twelve in 1664. The Hearth Money Roll of the same year lists several bearers of the name in Dorsey, Legmoylan, and Creggan, though none in Carnally. A census of 1766 listed at least eight families of the name in Carnally by that year.
Since the 17th century, Mac Murchaidh has become anglacised as Mac Murphy or Murphy. In Ulster
Ulster
Ulster is one of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the north of the island. In ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial...
, bearers of the name are found in their greatest concentrations in County Armagh
County Armagh
-History:Ancient Armagh was the territory of the Ulaid before the fourth century AD. It was ruled by the Red Branch, whose capital was Emain Macha near Armagh. The site, and subsequently the city, were named after the goddess Macha...
, with similar numbers in County Fermanagh
County Fermanagh
Fermanagh District Council is the only one of the 26 district councils in Northern Ireland that contains all of the county it is named after. The district council also contains a small section of County Tyrone in the Dromore and Kilskeery road areas....
and County Monaghan
County Monaghan
County Monaghan is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Monaghan. Monaghan County Council is the local authority for the county...
.
21st century
Murphy is the single most common Irish surname. However, most Murphy's elsewhere in Ireland are unrelated, being descendants of various other Mac Murchaidh, Mac Murchadha, and Ó Murchadha families.Notables
- Niall Mór Mac Mac Murchaidh, poet, fl. 17th/18th century.
- Niall Óge Mac Mac Murchaidh, poet, fl. 18th century.
- Séamus Mór Mac MhurchaidhSéamus Mór Mac MhurchaidhSéamus Mór Mac Mhurchaidh, , Irish poet and outlaw, 1720-1750.-Biography:Mac Mhurchaidh was a tóraidhe or rapparee, and in 1740 the leader of a strong band of raparees.-Origins:...
, poet and rappareeRappareeRapparees were Irish guerrilla fighters who operated on the Jacobite side during the 1690s Williamite war in Ireland. Subsequently the name was also given to bandits and highwaymen in Ireland - many former guerrillas having turned to crime after the war was over...
, 1720-1750. - Sean Mac Murchaidh, poet, fl. 18th century.
- Raodhmann na Rannta Mac Murchaidh, poet, fl. 18th century.
- James Murphy (Irish politician)James Murphy (Irish politician)James Edward Murphy was an Irish politician. A draper, he was elected unopposed as a Sinn Féin Teachta Dála to the 2nd Dáil at the 1921 elections for the Louth–Meath constituency. He supported the Anglo-Irish Treaty and voted in favour of it. He was re-elected as a pro-Treaty Sinn Féin TD at the...
, member of Sinn FéinSinn FéinSinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
, 1887-1961. - Mick Murphy (Sinn Féin politician)Mick Murphy (Sinn Féin politician)Michael Murphy is a nationalist politician in Northern Ireland. Active in republican politics since the civil rights campaigns of the 1960s, he worked as a publican. In 1996 he was elected as a member of the Northern Ireland Forum for Sinn Féin in South Down...
, born 1942. - Thomas Murphy (Irish republican), Chief of StaffChief of StaffThe title, chief of staff, identifies the leader of a complex organization, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a Principal Staff Officer , who is the coordinator of the supporting staff or a primary aide to an important individual, such as a president.In general, a chief of...
, IRAIrish Republican ArmyThe Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
, born 1949. - Colm MurphyColm MurphyColm Murphy is an Irish publican and building contractor who was the first person to be convicted in connection with the Omagh bombing, but whose conviction was overturned on appeal...
, convicted of liability for the Omagh bombingOmagh bombingThe Omagh bombing was a car bomb attack carried out by the Real Irish Republican Army , a splinter group of former Provisional Irish Republican Army members opposed to the Good Friday Agreement, on Saturday 15 August 1998, in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Twenty-nine people died as a...
, born 1952. - Conor MurphyConor MurphyConor Terence Murphy is an Irish republican Sinn Féin politician.According to An Phoblacht, Murphy first became involved with the Irish Republican Army during the 1981 hunger strikes...
, member of the IRAIrish Republican ArmyThe Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
and Sinn FéinSinn FéinSinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
, born 1963. - Alan MurphyAlan MurphyAlan Murphy was an English rock session guitarist, best remembered for his collaborations with Kate Bush and Go West. In 1988 he joined the group Level 42 as a full time band member, and played with them until his death in 1989...
, retired footballer, born 1978.
External links
- http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/surname/index.cfm?fuseaction=Go.&UserID=
- https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=ZGVmYXVsdGRvbWFpbnxnYXBvdGhlbm9ydGh8Z3g6NTdlMmYwMzE4ZTNkYmYzNw