Gaelic dynasty

McCarthy

Mac Cárthaigh

Also: MacCarthy, Carthy

“son of Cárthach, 'loving'”

The sept's historic heartland, highlighted. People moved — a name can be found far from home.

The story

Kings of Desmond, heirs of the ancient Eóganachta of Cashel. It was a MacCarthy who built Blarney Castle — and whose talk-around-a-treaty style allegedly gave English the word 'blarney'.

Their world Around 1450 — The Gaelic Resurgence. Plague, absentee landlords and Gaelic recovery shrink English Ireland to a fortified strip around Dublin.

See them on the atlas ↗

What the name is made of

Mac Cárthaigh
Mac — son of (Mc is the same word, contracted)
Cárthaigh — the ancestor, trade or place the name is built on

Find this form in the Irish-to-English index → · What Ó and Mac actually mean

Is McCarthy an Irish name?

McCarthy is a Gaelic name: it was formed in Irish, from an Irish ancestor, before English was spoken here.

The five answers, and why it is rarely yes or no →

From Wikipedia — “McCarthy (surname)”

McCarthy is a surname originating from the Irish noble McCarthy Clan of County Cork, Ireland. The surname, meaning "son of Cárthach" originated in Ireland. Commons variants of the name include McCarty and MacCarthy. Sixty percent of people with the surname in Ireland itself originate from County Cork, where the family was very powerful in the Middle Ages.

Read the full article ↗ · Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Neighbours — other names from the same counties

Buckley · Cork, Kerry Cronin · Cork, Kerry Culloty · Kerry, Cork Díaz · Cork, Kerry Dowling · Cork, Kerry Downey · Cork, Kerry Foley · Kerry, Cork Galvin · Kerry, Cork Kelleher · Cork, Kerry Moynihan · Kerry, Cork O'Donoghue · Kerry, Cork O'Mahony · Cork, Kerry O'Sullivan · Cork, Kerry Riordan · Cork, Kerry

Quick answers

Is McCarthy an Irish name?

McCarthy is a Gaelic name: it was formed in Irish, from an Irish ancestor, before English was spoken here. In Irish the name is Mac Cárthaigh.

What does the surname McCarthy mean?

McCarthy (Irish: Mac Cárthaigh) means “son of Cárthach, 'loving'”. Origin: Gaelic dynasty.

Where in Ireland is the surname McCarthy from?

The historic homeland of the McCarthy name is Cork, Kerry. People moved, so the name can be found far beyond it.

What is the Irish for McCarthy?

Mac Cárthaigh. Related spellings: MacCarthy, Carthy.

Looking for the McCarthy family crest? Read this first — arms belong to people, not surnames, and the honest version is more interesting. Tracing McCarthy ancestors? The step-by-step guide.

Not your spelling? Try the full A–Z. Know more about the McCarthy name? Add to the story.