- Dugan
-
This article is about the surname Dugan. For other uses, see Dugan (disambiguation).
Dugan / Duggan Family name Meaning Derived from Dubhagáin meaning dark or black Region of origin Celtic Related names Duggan, Dougan, Doughan, Doogan, and Duggin Contents
Dugan or Duggan (Irish: Uí Dhúgáin) is an Irish surname that arose simultaneously in a number of areas, including Cork, Roscommon, Galway, Wexford and Fermanagh. The best known family of the name had its territory near the modern town of Fermoy in north Cork, and were originally the ruling family of the Fir Maighe tribal group which gave its name to the town. They claimed descent from Mug Ruith, the legendary magician of the Fir Bolg. They ceded pre-eminence to the O'Keeffe family in the eleventh century, but remained powerful in the area. Along with the other Fir Maighe families they lost their power when the Normans conquered the territory in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.[1]
The Coat of Arms are azure with a crescent argent between nine stars of eight points. The motto, Virtve et Valore ("By Virtue and Valor") is derived from Old English rather than from the Irish translation of Ó Dubhagáin, meaning "dark" or "black." The motto is derived from the Old English word dūgan (preterite-present: dēag ‘it is useful’, dugon ‘they are useful’, dohte ‘it was useful’). Other definitions include "to avail, to be of use, to serve"; Ðonne his ellea deah ("when his valour avails"); "to be fit or strong".
In modern day, the name is found throughout Ireland. In the north, Dugan, Dougan, and Doogan are common, a large portion descended from families originally in County Fermanagh. Doogan is common in County Donegal. Duggan is most prevalent in Dublin, Munster, and the majority of County Cork, County Tipperary, County Wexford, and County Waterford.
Dugan and Dougan are also common Scottish names. Throughout other English speaking countries, Dugan and its many variants, including Duggan, Dougan, Doughan, Doogan, and Duggin are widespread. Dugan ranked 1,705 in surname listings in the 1990 United States Census.[2] In Great Britain, Duggan ranked 1,950 in surname listings from the 1881 Census, then surged to 1,025 in surname listings from the 1996 Electoral roll.[3]
See also
- Ó Dubhagáinn
Notable people
- Mike Doogan (born 1948), American writer, journalist and politician
- Seán Mór Ó Dubhagáin (d.1372), Irish Gaelic poet.
- Dennis Dugan (born 1946), American actor and film director
- Jeff Dugan (born 1981), American football player with the Minnesota Vikings
- Jeremiah Duggan (1980–2003), British student who died in disputed circumstances linked to the LaRouche movement.
- Joe Dugan (1897–1982), American baseball player from 1917–1931
- Alfred Duggan (1903-64) author and historian
- Hubert Duggan (1904-43) soldier and Member of Parliament
- General Michael Dugan (born 1937), former Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force
- Raymond Smith Dugan, (1878–1940), American Astronomer, textbook author and professor at Princeton University
- Major General, Sir Winston Joseph Dugan (1877–1951), British administrator who served as governor of South Australia
- Tom Dugan (1889–1955), American actor who was chosen for the first all-talking feature film, Lights of New York.(1928) among hundreds of other Hollywood movies. Died in a road accident with a train in 1955.
- Alan Dugan (1923 – 2003) was an American poet whose work won the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry.
Fictional Characters
- Duggan, a police detective Inspector as played by Tom Chadbon in the 1979 Doctor Who story City of Death, written by David Agnew - a pseudonym for the combined efforts of Douglas Adams and Graham Williams rewriting an original script by David Fisher
- Dum Dum Dugan, an officer of S.H.I.E.L.D. and is one of the most experienced members of Nick Fury's team, known for his marksmanship with rifles and for his impressive physique.
Further reading
- Burke, Henry Patrick. The Burke-Duggan Family From Oppression to Freedom. [S.l.]: H.P. Burke, 1981.
- Duggan, Edward Vincent. Duggan, Walton, Martin Descendants of Bartholomew and Mary Cummings Duggan Including Family Biographical and Historical Data, John and Henrietta Shirley Wathen Including Ancestral Data, Joseph and Elizabeth Martin Walton (Wathen), Daniel and Elizabeth Livers Martin Including Ancestral and Historical Data. Baltimore, MD: Gateway Press, 2002.
- Murphy, Hilary. Families of Co. Wexford. Dublin: Geography Publications, 1986. ISBN 0906602076
- Nichols, Robert E. From the Cottage at Duggan's Cross A Duggan Family History: the Immigrant Generation with an Account of the Allied Heffernan Family. Hammond, Ind: R.E. Nichols, 1996.
- Ó Murchadha, Diarmuid. Family Names of County Cork. Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin, Ireland: Glendale Press, 1985. ISBN 090760630X
Notes
- ^ http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/surname/index.cfm?fuseaction=History&Surname=Dugan&UserID= Retrieved 19 July 2008.
- ^ http://www.census.gov/genealogy/names/dist.all.last Retrieved 2007-08-30
- ^ Longley, Paul; Alex Singleton, Richard Webber and Daryl Lloyd. "Statistics on the name 'Duggan', used as a search term". SPLINT Project, University College London. The National Trust. http://www.nationaltrustnames.org.uk/. Retrieved 2008-07-19.
See also
External links
Categories:- Surnames
- Irish genealogy
- Irish families
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
