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Irish surname

McKeown: Irish Surname History & Coat of Arms

Mac Eóin; Mac Eoghain · Mac Eóin: 'son of John'; Mac Eoghain: 'son of Eoghan' (an old Irish personal name meaning 'well-born')

Woulfe (1923) gives MacKeown as an anglicised form of two Irish surnames whose English forms, he says, cannot be told apart: Mac Eóin, 'son of John', assumed by a branch of the Scottish family of Bissett who settled in the Glinns of Antrim in the 13th century, and Mac Eoghain, 'son of Eoghan', a Sligo surname. In 1890, 175 births of the name (McKeown, McKeon, McKeone and other spelling varieties) were registered in Ireland, 115 of them in Ulster.

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Coat of arms associated with the McKeown surname
Irish formMac Eóin; Mac Eoghain
MeaningMac Eóin: 'son of John'; Mac Eoghain: 'son of Eoghan' (an old Irish personal name meaning 'well-born')
CountiesAntrim, Down, Armagh, Londonderry
Other spellings10

Origin of the McKeown name

Mac Eóin, 'son of John': 'an Irish surname assumed by a branch of the Scottish family of Bissett who settled, in the 13th century, in the Glinns of Antrim'. Mac Eoghain, 'son of Eoghan': 'a Sligo surname'. Woulfe says the anglicised forms of the two are pronounced so nearly alike that it is impossible to distinguish them.[1][2]

  1. 13th centuryA branch of the Scottish Bissetts, who assumed the name Mac Eóin, settles in the Glinns of Antrim.[1]
  2. 1890175 births (McKeown 119, McKeon 40, McKeone 12), 115 of them in Ulster.[3]

Where in Ireland

Co. AntrimBissett branch (Mac Eóin) settled in the Glinns of Antrim; first county named for McKeown in 1890.[1][3]
Co. DownNamed by Matheson for 'McKeown' births in 1890.[3]
Co. ArmaghNamed by Matheson for 'McKeown' births in 1890.[3]
Co. LondonderryNamed by Matheson for 'McKeown' births in 1890.[3]
Co. LouthNamed for both 'McKeown' and 'McKeon'/'McKeone' births in 1890.[3]
Co. LeitrimNamed for 'McKeon' and 'McKeone' births in 1890.[3]
Co. SligoWoulfe calls Mac Eoghain 'a Sligo surname'.[2]

Other spellings

MacKeown · McKeon · McKeone · MacKeon · MacKeone · Keown · Keon · MacEoin · MacEown · MacOwen[1][2]

Scottish connection

Woulfe says Mac Eóin, one Irish source of McKeown, is 'an Irish surname assumed by a branch of the Scottish family of Bissett who settled, in the 13th century, in the Glinns of Antrim'. The other source, Mac Eoghain, he gives as a Sligo surname, with no Scottish link.[1][2]

The McKeown coat of arms

The design shown is a coat of arms associated with the McKeown 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.

McKeown crest gifts

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McKeown surname: questions

Is McKeown Irish or Scottish?

Both strands appear in Woulfe. Mac Eóin was an Irish surname assumed by a branch of the Scottish Bissett family settled in the Glinns of Antrim in the 13th century; Mac Eoghain was a Sligo surname. Woulfe says their English forms cannot be told apart.[1][2]

What does the surname McKeown mean?

Mac Eóin means 'son of John'; Mac Eoghain means 'son of Eoghan', an old Irish personal name meaning 'well-born' (Woulfe).[1][2]

Where in Ireland is McKeown from?

Mainly Ulster. In 1890, 115 of 175 births were in Ulster; 'McKeown' was found chiefly in Antrim, Down, Armagh, Londonderry and Louth, and 'McKeon' and 'McKeone' in Leitrim and Louth.[3]

Are McKeown and McKeon the same name?

Matheson counts McKeown, McKeon and McKeone together for 1890, and Woulfe lists MacKeon, MacKeone and MacKeown among the anglicised forms of Mac Eóin.[3][1]

Sources

  1. Mac Eóin — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/mace/mac-eoin.php
  2. Mac Eoghain — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/mace/mac-eoghain.php
  3. McKeown — Birth Indexes of 1890 — Special Report on Surnames in Ireland (Robert E. Matheson, 1909), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/matheson/report/births/mckeown.php

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