McGinn
An Irish surname usually understood as a shortened form of Mac an Ghoinn or a related Gaelic name, meaning “son of the smith” or a similar patronymic.
The #5,807 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 51,846 Americans shares it.
Etymology
McGinn is an Anglicized Irish surname, most likely from Gaelic Mac Gionnáin or a related form, with the final element ultimately linked to a personal name rather than the English word “gin.” In older surname scholarship, it is often grouped with a family of Irish names beginning Mac/ McG-, many of which come from Gaelic patronymics. The exact Gaelic source has been discussed in different ways, so the precise literal meaning is not always given consistently in older references.
History
The name is found in Ireland, especially in Ulster, and later appears in Scottish records as well through migration and parallel Gaelic forms. In English-language records it was often standardized as McGinn, though older sources show spellings such as MacGinn and Maginn. The surname is relatively common in Irish diaspora communities in Britain, North America, and Australia.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname lists often group McGinn with several neighboring Irish names like McGinty, McGinnis, and McGlynn because of their similar Gaelic-looking forms, even when their origins differ.
From the historical record
“Gibbins, Gibbings. mA5 "pinn, Maginn, MacGinn, MacGin, MacGing, Megginn, Ginn. tHAg pinneAccA, TTIA5 pnineAC-”
— Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish names and surnames