Gaelic sept

McGale

Mac Cathail / Mac Cathmhaoil

Also: MacGale, McGail

“son of Cathal, 'battle-mighty' — or of Cathmhaol, 'battle-chief'; the authorities differ”

🏔 Tyrone · Tír Eoghain Source: Woulfe, Irish Names and Surnames (1923) ↗

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

The story

A name of one place: Omagh. MacLysaght calls it 'quite numerous' there and a variant of MacCall, and the record agrees. Every one of the seventeen McGale households in Griffith's Valuation of the 1850s was in County Tyrone, in three parishes, and the name barely exists anywhere else in Ireland. Which Irish name it hides is the interesting part. The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland derives it from Mac Cathail, son of Cathal, 'battle-mighty'; MacLysaght derives MacCall from Mac Cathmhaoil, son of Cathmhaol, 'battle-chief' — the great learned family of Clogher in Tyrone, who supplied the church with scholars and dignitaries for centuries and were chiefs of Kinel Farry. Woulfe, writing in 1923, explained why nobody can settle it: in Ulster the English forms of the two names cannot be told apart. A McGale is a son of a battle-name from Tyrone either way.

Their world Around 1400 — 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 Cathail
Mac — son of (Mc is the same word, contracted)
Cathail — the ancestor, trade or place the name is built on
Mac Cathmhaoil
Mac — son of (Mc is the same word, contracted)
Cathmhaoil — 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 McGale an Irish name?

McGale 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 →

Neighbours — other names from the same counties

Campbell · Tyrone Conlan · Tyrone Cooney · Tyrone Devlin · Tyrone Donnelly · Tyrone Hughes · Tyrone Martin · Tyrone McKenna · Tyrone McNally · Tyrone O'Hagan · Tyrone O'Neill · Tyrone Quinn · Tyrone Stewart · Tyrone Wilson · Tyrone

Quick answers

Is McGale an Irish name?

McGale is a Gaelic name: it was formed in Irish, from an Irish ancestor, before English was spoken here. In Irish the name is Mac Cathail / Mac Cathmhaoil.

What does the surname McGale mean?

McGale (Irish: Mac Cathail / Mac Cathmhaoil) means “son of Cathal, 'battle-mighty' — or of Cathmhaol, 'battle-chief'; the authorities differ”. Origin: Gaelic sept.

Where in Ireland is the surname McGale from?

The historic homeland of the McGale name is Tyrone. People moved, so the name can be found far beyond it.

What is the Irish for McGale?

Mac Cathail / Mac Cathmhaoil. Related spellings: MacGale, McGail.

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

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