Dugan

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This article is about the surname Dugan. For other uses, see Dugan (disambiguation).

Dugan Family Name
Dugan Family Crest
Meaning	Derived from Dubhagáin meaning dark or black
Region of origin	Celtic
Related names	Duggan, Dougan, Doughan, Doogan, and Duggin
Popularity	Behind the Name
Wikipedia articles	All pages beginning with Dugan

1 Notable people
2 Further reading
3 Notes
4 External links

Dugan is an Irish surname that arose simultaneously in a number of areas, including Cork, Roscommon, Galway, Wexford and Fermanagh. The best known family of the name had its territory near the modern town of Fermoy in north Cork, and were originally the ruling family of the Fir Maighe tribal group which gave its name to the town. They claimed descent from Mug Ruith, the legendary magician of the Fir Bolg. They ceded pre-eminence to the O'Keeffe family in the eleventh century, but remained powerful in the area. Along with the other Fir Maighe families they lost their power when the Normans conquered the territory in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.^[1]

The Coat of Arms are azure with a crescent argent between nine stars of eight points. The motto, Virtve et Valore ("By Virtue and Valor") is derived from Old English rather than from the Irish translation of Ó Dubhagáin, meaning "dark" or "black." The motto is derived from the Old English word dūgan (preterite-present: dēag ‘it is useful’, dugon ‘they are useful’, dohte ‘it was useful’). Other definitions include "to avail, to be of use, to serve"; Ðonne his ellea deah ("when his valour avails"); "to be fit or strong".

In modern day, the name is found throughout Ireland. In the north, Dugan, Dougan, and Doogan are common, a large portion descended from families originally in County Fermanagh. Doogan is common in County Donegal. Duggan is most prevalent in Dublin, Munster, and the majority of County Cork, County Tipperary, County Wexford, and County Waterford.

Dugan and Dougan are also common Scottish names. Throughout other English speaking countries, Dugan and its many variants, including Duggan, Dougan, Doughan, Doogan, and Duggin are widespread. Dugan ranked 1,705 in surname listings in the 1990 United States Census.^[2] In Great Britain, Duggan ranked 1,950 in surname listings from the 1881 Census,^[3] then surged to 1,025 in surname listings from the 1996 Electoral roll.^[4]

[edit] Notable people

Dennis Dugan (born 1946), American actor and film director
Eamonn Duggan (1874 – 1936), Irish nationalist signatory to the Anglo-Irish Treaty in 1921 and Minister of Home Affairs in the first Irish Free State government
Jeff Dugan (born 1981), American footballer player with the Minnesota Vikings
Jim Duggan (born 1954), American professional wrestler
Joe Dugan (1897 - 1982), American basepall player from 1917-1931
General Michael Dugan (born 1937), former Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force
Major General, Sir Winston Joseph Dugan (1877–1951), British administrator who served as Governor of South Australia
The Duggans, Irish musical duo from Gweedore, County Donegal
Michael Duggan, British High Court Employment Lawyer located at Littleton Chambers in London. Born in Durham 27th April 1966. Defended for Fulham FC and Bank of England.
Thomas Duggan, Conservative Councillor Shipley West Yorks Uk, went on to become Lord Mayor of Shipley and a Knight of St.Sylvester.

[edit] Further reading

Burke, Henry Patrick. The Burke-Duggan Family From Oppression to Freedom. [S.l.]: H.P. Burke, 1981.
Duggan, Edward Vincent. Duggan, Walton, Martin Descendants of Bartholomew and Mary Cummings Duggan Including Family Biographical and Historical Data, John and Henrietta Shirley Wathen Including Ancestral Data, Joseph and Elizabeth Martin Walton (Wathen), Daniel and Elizabeth Livers Martin Including Ancestral and Historical Data. Baltimore, MD: Gateway Press, 2002.
Murphy, Hilary. Families of Co. Wexford. Dublin: Geography Publications, 1986. ISBN 0906602076
Nichols, Robert E. From the Cottage at Duggan's Cross A Duggan Family History : the Immigrant Generation with an Account of the Allied Heffernan Family. Hammond, Ind: R.E. Nichols, 1996.
Ó Murchadha, Diarmuid. Family Names of County Cork. Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin, Ireland: Glendale Press, 1985. ISBN 090760630X