MCELWEE
Recorded variant spellings include Mc Elwee, Mcelwee
McElwee is a surname of Gaelic origin, found principally in Scotland and Ireland. The name descends from the patronymic prefix Mac, meaning "son of", and an element describing a personal devotion or physical description.
In its Irish form the surname is generally interpreted as derived from Mac Giolla Bhuidhe, which translates literally as "son of the servant of the blond one". The Gaelic element giolla denotes a devotee or follower, while bhuidhe means "blond" or "yellow". This construction is attested in many medieval records and is considered the most widely accepted explanation among scholars.
In contrast, a Scottish variant is traced to Mac Giolla Mhaoil or Mac Giolla Ruaidh. These versions mean respectively "son of the servant of the devotee" and "the son of the servant of the red-haired youth". The latter suggests a possible reference to a Dane or Norseman, terminologically tied to the Gaelic name Mac giolla Ruaidh that appears in early Scottish charters.
The surname first appears in the calendar of the Earldom of Morton in the year 1376, under the spelling Michael M'Gilrey. This document, dated to the reign of King Robert I, confirms the antiquity of the name in Scottish records.
Within Ireland, the McElwee sept is traditionally associated with County Fermanagh, particularly the area of Ballymackilroy on the east side of Lough Erne. Other place names such as Ballymackilroy in County Tyrone and County Antrim bear the same patronymic root. The annals of the Four Masters and Loch Ce record the activities of the McElweh family in the fifteenth century, indicating their prominence in Gaelic society.
During the turbulent year 1798, Reverend John McElroy, a Catholic priest, was a native of County Fermanagh. He was educated at a hedge school and later became involved with the United Irishmen. He later emigrated to the United States, where he gained renown as a missionary and church builder in the early nineteenth century.
The nineteenth‑century Great Famine prompted the emigration of several McElwees. Among them were the case of Mrs. Ellen McElroy and her children, who departed Liverpool aboard the "Ohio" in March 1846 bound for New York. In the same period, other individuals registered in historic registers include Mary McElree of Maghera, County Derry (1845), and James McElrea of Cappagh by Omagh, County Tyrone (1855). These records demonstrate the diaspora and distribution of the surname during that era.
The spelling of the surname has varied widely over the centuries. Recorded forms include McIlroy, McGilroy, McElree, McElrea, McAlroy, MacKilroy, Kilroy, Gilroy, McClewee and others. Such orthographic diversity reflects the adaptation of the name to Anglicised contexts and the fluidity of Gaelic transcription.
In modern times the surname remains uncommon. In the United States, the 2000 Census lists the name as the 2006th most frequent surname, with roughly six thousand bearers, largely reflective of Irish commuter migration. In both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland the name continues to feature within the top one hundred surnames, evidence of its deep roots in those societies. In the United Kingdom and other English‑speaking countries the name is found, but it remains relatively rare compared to other Irish surnames.
Despite its rarity, bearers of the name McElwee retain a clear link to a heritage that spans the British Isles and beyond. The strict patronymic construction signifies a lineage that may have originally belonged to a devotee of a religious figure or a youth distinguished by personal attributes such as hair colour. The historical records that survive validate the enduring nature of the name, preserving its connection to both Scotland and Ireland for future generations to explore.
Typical given names associated with the McElwee surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- Ian
- James
- John
- Joseph
- Mark
- Michael
- Peter
- Robert
Female
- Angela
- Carol
- Claire
- Elizabeth
- Emma
- Joanne
- Kathleen
- Margaret
- Mary
- Nicola
- Paula
- Roisin
- 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 McElwee in...
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There are approximately 596 people named McElwee in the UK. That makes it one of Britain's least common surnames. Only around nine in a million people in Britain are named McElwee.
Surname type: From name of parent
Origin: Celtic
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: Ireland
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: Gaelic
Famous people named McElwee
- Thomas McElwee - IRA member (1957 to 1981)
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.