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Irish surname

Mullins: Irish Surname History & Coat of Arms

Ó Maoláin · 'descendant of Maolán' (diminutive of maol, bald)

Woulfe (1923) prints Mullins among the anglicised forms of three different Irish surnames: Ó Maoláin, Mac Maoláin and the rare Ó Maoilfhinn. He calls Ó Maoláin one of the commonest surnames in Ireland. In the 1890 births index Mullins was found principally in Cork and Clare.

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Coat of arms associated with the Mullins surname
Irish formÓ Maoláin
Meaning'descendant of Maolán' (diminutive of maol, bald)
CountiesCork, Clare, Derry, Dublin
Other spellings6
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Origin of the Mullins name

Woulfe gives three sources: Ó Maoláin, 'descendant of Maolán', found almost everywhere, whose only apparent dynastic family was in O'Kane's country, Co. Derry; Mac Maoláin, 'son of Maolán', 12th-century lords of Gaileang Breagh, later confined to North-East Ulster; and Ó Maoilfhinn, 'a rare South Leinster surname'.[1][2][3]

  1. 1041Four Masters: 'Maelbrighde Ua Maelfinn, priest, anchorite, and bishop, died.'[7]
  2. 12th centuryMac Maoláin was lord of Gaileang Breagh, north of present Co. Dublin.[2]
  3. 189047 Mullins births registered in Ireland, 35 of them in Munster.[4]

Where in Ireland

Co. CorkNamed first of the counties where Mullins births were principally found in 1890.[4]
Co. ClareNamed with Cork as principal county for Mullins births in 1890.[4]
Co. DerryWoulfe: the only apparent dynastic Ó Maoláin family was that of O'Kane's country, Co. Derry.[1]
Co. DublinIn the 12th century Mac Maoláin was lord of Gaileang Breagh, north of the present Co. Dublin.[2]

Notable people named Mullins

George Mullinsfl. 1760–1775Painter, 'a native of Ireland'; painted trays and snuffboxes at Waterford; exhibited at the Royal Academy 1770–1775.[8]

Other spellings

Mullin · Mullane · O'Mullane · Mullen · Mullan · Moylan[2][3]

Scottish connection

Under Mac Maoláin, one of the Irish names Woulfe gives Mullins as a form of, he writes: 'There is also a Scottish Mac Maoláin.'[2]

The Mullins coat of arms

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

Mullins surname: questions

Is Mullins an Irish surname?

Woulfe prints Mullins as an anglicised form of three Irish surnames: Ó Maoláin, Mac Maoláin and Ó Maoilfhinn. He does not say every Mullins family comes from one of them.[1][2][3]

What does the surname Mullins mean?

For Ó Maoláin and Mac Maoláin, Woulfe gives 'descendant' or 'son of Maolán', a diminutive of maol, bald. For the rare Ó Maoilfhinn he gives 'descendant of Maolfionn' (fair chief).[1][2][3]

Where in Ireland is the Mullins name found?

In the 1890 births index there were 47 Mullins entries: 35 in Munster, 8 in Leinster and 4 in Connaught, principally in Cork and Clare.[4]

Are Mullins, Mullen and Mullane the same name?

Woulfe prints Mullins, Mullen, Mullan and Mullane all as forms of Ó Maoláin. Matheson's 1901 list of names used interchangeably shows Mullane and O'Mullane (each reported from one registration district) and Mullen under Mullins. Woulfe also lists Mullins under two other surnames, so not every Mullins is Ó Maoláin.[1][2][3][5][6]

Sources

  1. Ó Maoláin — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/om/o-maolain.php
  2. Mac Maoláin — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/macm/mac-maolain.php
  3. Ó Maoilfhinn — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/om/o-maoilfhinn.php
  4. Mullins — Birth Indexes of 1890 — Special Report on Surnames in Ireland (Robert E. Matheson, 1909), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/matheson/report/births/mullins.php
  5. Mullins (list no. 1582) — Varieties and Synonymes of Surnames and Christian Names in Ireland (Robert E. Matheson, 1901), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/matheson/varieties/list/1582.php
  6. Memorandum explanatory of Alphabetical List — Varieties and Synonymes of Surnames (Robert E. Matheson, 1901), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/matheson/varieties/memorandum.php
  7. Annals of the Four Masters, M1041.1 (tr. John O'Donovan), CELT, University College Cork. celt.ucc.ie/published/T100005B/text014.html
  8. Mullins, George — Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, vol. 39 (Lionel Henry Cust), Wikisource. en.wikisource.org/wiki/Dictionary_of_National_Biography,_1885-1900/...

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