MCGHEE
Recorded variant spellings include Mc Ghee, Mcghee
McGhee is a surname of Gaelic origin, borne chiefly by families in Scotland and Ireland. The name is a patronymic, derived from the Gaelic Mac Aoidh – literally “son of Aodh.” The personal name Aodh translates as “fire” or “fire‑spring,” and in early Celtic belief was associated with the pagan god of the sun. Consequently, the surname literally means “son of fire,” signifying a lineage that was thought to possess the qualities of fire, passion and energy.
The earliest recorded use of the name appears in Scottish documentaries of the late thirteenth century, in the form Gille Michel MacGethe (1296). By the fourteenth century the name was recorded in several variant spellings, including McGeth, Michael Macge, and John Makky. These early forms show the transition from the original Gaelic MagAoidh – where the prefix “Mag” is used in place of “Mac” before a vowel – to the Anglicised “McGhee.”
In the Lowlands, particularly the Galloway region, the McGhee lineage was significant enough that a place called Balmaghie is believed to derive from the family name. In Ireland, a sept bearing the name appears in the county of Westmeath, yet the majority of Irish McGhees are found in the Ulster counties of Donegal and Tyrone. Many Irish bearers of the name can trace their ancestry to Scottish settlers who arrived during the Plantation of Ulster in the early seventeenth century.
Throughout history the surname has undergone further variation in spelling. Common forms include McGee, MacGhee, MacGee, Magee, MacGhie, and M’Ghee. Occasionally the name has been recorded in forms that deviate more substantially, such as Mackie, McKay, or MacKee, though these are generally regarded as surnames of similar root rather than direct variants of McGhee.
In the modern era, migration and diaspora have dispersed the surname beyond its Scottish and Irish heartlands. Large numbers of McGhees emigrated to North America in the nineteenth century, with records of a young emigrant, James McGhee, departing Liverpool on the ship Cornelia in 1846 for New York. Today, the name has a notable presence in the United States and in the United Kingdom, particularly in the regions historically associated with the surname’s origin.
Although McGhee is distinct from the surnames Hughes and Hayes, all share a common linguistic root in the Gaelic Aodh. These names reflect a broader pattern of patronymic surnames derived from a male ancestor’s personal name, a practice that was common throughout Celtic societies.
Typical given names associated with the McGhee surname
Male
- Alexander
- Andrew
- David
- James
- John
- Michael
- Paul
- Robert
- Thomas
- William
Female
- Angela
- Catherine
- Claire
- Elizabeth
- Helen
- Jacqueline
- Jean
- Margaret
- Mary
- Patricia
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname McGhee in...
Braille
⠍⠉⠛⠓⠑⠑
Morse
---.-.--.......
Semaphore
There are approximately 6,013 people named McGhee in the UK. That makes it roughly the 1,577th most common surname in Britain. Around 92 in a million people in Britain are named McGhee.
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 McGhee
- Mark McGhee - Scottish football player
- Jordan McGhee - Scottish football player
- Gerry McGhee - Singer
- David McGhee - Football player
- Bart McGhee - American soccer player (1899 to 1979)
- Joe McGhee - Marathon runner (1929 to 2015)
- Henry McGhee - Politician (1898 to 1959)
- Thomas McGhee - Football player (1929 to 2018)
- Jamie McGhee - Football player
- Graham McGhee - Scottish football player
- Jim McGhee - Football player
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.