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Irish surname

MacDowell: Irish Surname History & Coat of Arms

Mac Dubhghaill · 'son of Dubhghall' (the black-stranger, a name given by the Irish to the Danes)

Woulfe (1923) gives MacDowell among the forms of Mac Dubhghaill, 'son of Dubhghall' (the black-stranger, a name given by the Irish to the Danes). He calls it the name of a Scoto-Irish family of the same stock as the MacDonalds, and says some of them came to Ireland in the 14th and 15th centuries as captains of gallowglasses and settled in Co. Roscommon and other parts of the west and north. Matheson's 1890 birth index has 91 McDowell entries including spelling varieties, 80 of them in Ulster.

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Coat of arms associated with the MacDowell surname
Irish formMac Dubhghaill
Meaning'son of Dubhghall' (the black-stranger, a name given by the Irish to the Danes)
CountiesRoscommon, Antrim, Down
Other spellings7
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MacDowell crest gifts

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Origin of the MacDowell name

Woulfe: 'the name of a Scoto-Irish family of the same stock as the MacDonalds', descended from Somhairle, thane of Argyle (slain 1165). 'The MacDugalds were lords of Lorne in Scotland.' Some came to Ireland in the 14th and 15th centuries as captains of gallowglasses and settled in Co. Roscommon and other parts of the west and north.[1]

  1. 1299Four Masters: Alexander Mac Donnell slain by Alexander Mac Dowell.[4]
  2. 1377Four Masters: Mac Dowell Galloglagh among those slain at Roscommon in Rory O'Conor's victory over Mac William Burke.[5]
  3. 1469Four Masters: Mac Dowell (Owen) treacherously slain in his own house by the sons of Colla Mac Dowell.[6]
  4. 189091 McDowell birth entries including spelling varieties (89 spelled McDowell); 80 in Ulster.[2]

Where in Ireland

Co. RoscommonWoulfe: Scoto-Irish MacDugalds, gallowglass captains, settled there and elsewhere in the west and north.[1]
Co. AntrimMatheson 1890: McDowell 'principally found' in Antrim and Down.[2]
Co. DownMatheson 1890: McDowell 'principally found' in Antrim and Down.[2]

Notable people named MacDowell

Patrick MacDowell1799–1870Sculptor, born in Belfast 12 August 1799; Royal Academician from 1846; died in London 9 December 1870.[7]

Other spellings

MacDowall · MacDougall · MacDugal · MacDugald · MacDool · McDowell · Dowell[1]

Scottish connection

Woulfe lists MacDougall and MacDugald among the forms and says the Mac Dubhghaill family were 'Scoto-Irish', of the same stock as the MacDonalds, and that 'the MacDugalds were lords of Lorne in Scotland'.[1]

The MacDowell coat of arms

The design shown is a coat of arms associated with the MacDowell surname. In Irish and British heraldry a coat of arms is granted to one person and passes to their heirs; it does not belong to everyone who shares the surname. Many families still use the arms of their name as a symbol of their heritage.

MacDowell surname: questions

Is MacDowell an Irish or Scottish surname?

Woulfe calls it the name of a Scoto-Irish family of the same stock as the MacDonalds; the MacDugalds were lords of Lorne in Scotland, and some came to Ireland as gallowglass captains in the 14th and 15th centuries.[1]

What does MacDowell mean?

Woulfe gives 'son of Dubhghall' (the black-stranger, a name given by the Irish to the Danes), from Mac Dubhghaill.[1]

Where in Ireland is MacDowell found?

Woulfe says some settled in Co. Roscommon and other parts of the west and north. In 1890 Matheson found McDowell principally in Antrim and Down; 80 of 91 entries including spelling varieties were in Ulster.[1][2]

Are MacDowell and McDowell the same name?

Matheson's 1901 variety list prints Macdowell under M'Dowell, and Woulfe prints MacDowell among the forms of Mac Dubhghaill.[3][1]

Sources

  1. Mac Dubhghaill — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/macd/mac-dubhghaill.php
  2. McDowell — Birth Indexes of 1890 — Special Report on Surnames in Ireland (Robert E. Matheson, 1909), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/matheson/report/births/mcdowell.php
  3. M'Dowell — Varieties and Synonymes of Surnames and Christian Names in Ireland (Robert E. Matheson, 1901), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/matheson/varieties/list/1302.php
  4. Annals of the Four Masters (trans. John O'Donovan), 1299 (part 13) — CELT edition, CELT, University College Cork. celt.ucc.ie/published/T100005C/text013.html
  5. Annals of the Four Masters (trans. John O'Donovan), 1377 (part 1) — CELT edition, CELT, University College Cork. celt.ucc.ie/published/T100005D/text001.html
  6. Annals of the Four Masters (trans. John O'Donovan), 1469 (part 10) — CELT edition, CELT, University College Cork. celt.ucc.ie/published/T100005D/text010.html
  7. MacDowell, Patrick — A Compendium of Irish Biography (Alfred Webb, 1878), LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/biography/PatrickMacDowell.php

Note: Matheson's 1890 figures for a surname include its spelling varieties (Matheson, Table Explanation).