The surname McCullough appears to be patronymical in origin and is an old Galwegian name (Galwegian means inhabitant of Galloway, Scotland). Research indicates that the original name means “son of the boar’ and was derived from the Gaelic word culagh. To the Celts, the boar was a symbol of fearlessness in battle and was used as a synonym of McCullough. The Scots used the prefix “Mac” to denote “son of” and Mac was sometimes abbreviated Mc or M’. There were two distinct groups of Scottish surnames the Highland and Lowland. The Highland Scots designated a man by his father’s name, and they generally were associated with a clan. The clan system was largely responsible for preserving the old ways of the Highlanders. A man would join a clan for protection and, to show allegiance to the clan chief, he would adopt a clan surname; usually Mac followed by the chief’s name. Antrim, Northern Ireland - Many McCulloughs left Scotland in the seventeenth century for this beautiful land. Today there are more McCulloughs living in Northern Ireland than anywhere else in the British Isles. Much obscurity enshrouds the true origins of the ancient McCullough name. McCulloughs are said to be descended from Somerled through his second son Reginald Somerled was a leading figure in the western Highlands and islands of Scotland in 1130 A.D. when he defeated the Norse and became King of the Isles. His oldest son, Dougall, is the father of Clan MacDougall. From Reginald, his second son, not only did the McCulloughs come but also the mighty Clan Ranald (MacDonald). The MacDonalds descended from Donald, the oldest son of Reginald and the McCulloughs sprang from the seed of Ulgrie, King of the Strathclyde Britons. Records show that in 1507, when the Earl of Derby, King of Man, raided the town of Kirkcudbright, Cutler McCulloch, chief of the clan, sailed to the Isle of Man, which he ravaged and plundered. In 1514, a charter was granted to M’Culloch of Myretoun to the lands of Merton, constituting them into a barony until the year 1566. In 1587, William McCullouch of Cardoness and his wife, Mary, granted to their nephew, William McCullouch, the lands of Ardwall. In 1634, this family was raised to the rank of baronet of Nova Scotia by Charles I. The The ruins of Dunlance Castle in Antrim, Ireland. last baronet was Sir Godfrey McCullouch of Ardwall. He was beheaded at Edinburgh on March 26, 1697 for shooting William Gourdon. The clan members left the area in large numbers and migrated to Ireland and North America. The primary area of settlement in Ireland was Ulster, principally in the counties of Antrim, Down, and Tyrone. Although there are still many McCulloughs (with various spellings) in Scotland, the greatest concentration of McCulloughs in the British Isles are in Northern Ireland, There are approximately 5,000 McCulloughs with various name spellings in Northern Ireland today. The best-known people of the name were Ulstermen: James MacCullagh (1809-1847), born in Strabane, Ireland was an eminent mathematician and physicist; John Edward McCullough (1 837-1885), born at Coleraine, was a leading tragedian in America. The McCullough Coat of Arms as listed in Burke’s General Armory. A Coat of Arms was granted as a gift to the recipient by the King, which gave the bearer the right to bear arms. The McCullough motto is “Vi et animo”, which is translated from Latin meaning “By strength and courage”
Posted on: Fri, 18 Jul 2014 18:00:42 +0000
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