MCCAIG
Recorded variant spellings include Mc Caig, Mccaig
McCaig is a surname of Gaelic origin, principally situated within the Scottish part of the British Isles. The name is a patronymic, derived from the personal name MacAoidh which translates as “son of Aodh”. The Gaelic element Aodh means “fire” or “fiery”, and the name is therefore interpreted as “son of the fiery one”.
In earlier manuscripts the surname appears in a multitude of spellings, including MacCaig, MacKaig, McKag, McKage, McKague and McKeag. Some early records suggest a further etymology from the pre‑10th‑century Gaelic Mac Thoig, meaning “son of Tadhg”, the name Tadhg itself being an early Irish word for a poet or philosopher. The coexistence of these variants indicates that the surname has been influenced by both Scottish and Irish Gaelic lineages.
The surname is predominantly found in Scotland, with a concentration in the counties of Ayrshire and Galloway, and a presence in Dumfriesshire. In Ireland it is mainly associated with the County of Galway and, in its many spelling forms, with the province of Ulster. These geographic distributions are supported by parish and civil records dating back to the sixteenth century.
Historic documents provide the earliest explicit recording of the family name in the year 1486, when a John Makkaig served as a Charter Witness at Wigtown in Scotland during the reign of King James XI. Subsequent examples include Andrew McCaig, a follower of the Earl of Darnley who perished with the Earl at the blowing up of Kirk O'Field in 1567; Helen McKaig, who married Jone Robertson of Edinburgh on 10 July 1668; and Archbald McKeag of Kintyre, who was arrested in 1685 for being a rebel. In the eighteenth century the name appears in London parish registers, for example Sarah, daughter of Malachy and Ann McKeige, christened at St Andrew's, Holborn, on 11 September 1763, and Charlotte, daughter of Michael McKigg, christened at the same place on 8 December 1771. In the nineteenth century an example is Edward McKag, listed as a famine emigrant who departed from Ireland for New York on the coffin ship St George of Liverpool on 3 August 1846.
The religious affiliation of bearers of the name has historically been Christian, reflecting the predominant faith of the Kingdom of Scotland, while the surname’s origin in Celtic culture stems from the broader Gaelic linguistic heritage of the region. The name remains a clear illustration of a patronymic convention common in Scottish society, wherein the surname directly reflects the identity of a father or ancestor.
Typical given names associated with the McCaig surname
Male
- Alan
- Andrew
- David
- Ian
- James
- John
- Peter
- Robert
- Stephen
- William
Female
- Alison
- Anne
- Carol
- Catherine
- Elizabeth
- Helen
- Linda
- Lorraine
- Lynne
- Margaret
- Mary
- Nicola
- Sarah
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
- Maccaig
- Macaig
- M'Caig
- Mccaige
- Macak
- Maccuaig
- Macgough
- Mackegg
- Macock
- Macuga
- Macuk
- Magog
- Magoga
- Magough
- Makowka
- Maycock
- Maycook
- Mccaa
- Mccae
- Mccage
- Mccagh
- Mccaghy
- Mccagie
- Mccague
- Mccaie
- Mccaighy
- Mccaigue
- Mccail
- Mccain
- Mccaughie
- Mccay
- Mccoig
- Mccook
- Mccooke
- Mccouaig
- Mccough
- Mccraig
- Mccuaig
- Mccugh
- Mcgagh
- Mcgaig
- Mcgaugh
- Mcgough
- Mckague
- Mckaig
- Mckaigg
- Mckaigue
- Mckeag
- Mckeage
- Mckeague
- Mckegg
- Mckeggie
- Mckeigh
- Mckeigue
- Mckeogh
- Mckeough
- Mcquaig
- Mcquigg
- Meacock
- Mecock
- Mikac
- Mikic
- Mikuc
- Mikucki
- Mocock
- Mokoko
- Mowcock
- Mukuka
- Mycock
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname McCaig in...
Braille
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Morse
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Semaphore
There are approximately 1,675 people named McCaig in the UK. That makes it roughly the 4,902nd most common surname in Britain. Around 26 in a million people in Britain are named McCaig.
Surname type: From name of parent
Origin: Celtic
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: Scotland
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: Gaelic
Famous people named McCaig
- Callum McCaig - Scottish politician
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.