Morgan (surname)
Morgan | |
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Family name | |
Region of origin | Wales, Ireland, Scotland, Brittany |
Language(s) of origin | Welsh, Breton |
Related names | Morganach, Ó Muireagáin, Morgant |
Morgan is a surname with several different origins.
Origins and variants
The Welsh surname is derived from the Old Welsh personal name "Morcant", which is of an uncertain origin. The Irish surname is an amalgamation of this Welsh surname, which was brought to Ireland in the Middle Ages, and several Gaelic surnames, most notably "Ó Muireagáin". The Scottish surname is of an uncertain origin. It may, however, be derived from a Gaelic cognate of the Welsh "Morcant" already mentioned.[1] The Pictish form was "Morgunn".[2] Ultimately, "Morgan"'s origins are Celtic.
The surname "Morgan" traces its origin from the powerful Welsh family established c. 1330 by Morgan ap Llewelyn (son of Llewelyn ap Ifor, Lord of St. Clere, and Angharad, daughter and heiress of Sir Morgan ap Maredudd (Meredith), Lord of Tredegar), and is of Welsh origin, meaning either "great kingdom" or "great hundred". It is a popular family name in Wales, as well as there being a group of "Morgan"s from "Morgund". It is possible that the name was Celtic from the Cornovii Tribe who lived in the North of Scotland and in the Severn Valley near the Wrekin in Shropshire. The County of Glamorgan is named after the Princes of South Wales named "Morgan", a group, part of which developed into the name Leyshon. The term for water sprites in Welsh is morgans.[3]
At the time of the British Census of 1881,[4] the frequency of the surname "Morgan" was highest in Brecknockshire (over 16 times the national average), followed by Monmouthshire, Glamorgan, Carmarthenshire, Radnorshire, Montgomeryshire, Cardiganshire, Pembrokeshire, Herefordshire, and Shropshire.
People with the surname
- Adam Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Alex Morgan (born 1989), American women's soccer player
- Andrew Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Barry Morgan, Archbishop of Wales from 2003
- Bob Morgan (disambiguation), several people named Bob or Bobby
- Bonnie Morgan, contortionist and actress
- Carroll Morgan, Canadian heavyweight boxer
- Carroll Morgan (computer scientist), American-Australian computer scientist
- Clement G. Morgan, attorney, civil rights activist, and public official
- Cliff Morgan, Welsh rugby union player
- C. Lloyd Morgan, British psychologist known by "Morgan's Canon"
- Colin Morgan, Northern Irish actor, star of television series Merlin
- Cory Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Dale Morgan, American historian of the American west
- Dan Morgan, American football player
- Daniel Morgan, brigadier general in the Continental Army in the American Revolution
- David Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Debelah Morgan, American singer
- Dell Morgan (1900–1962), American college sports coach
- Denroy Morgan, Jamaican American reggae artist
- Dermot Morgan, Irish actor best known as Father Ted
- Diane Morgan, English actress, comedian and writer
- Don Morgan, Canadian politician
- Doug Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Ed Morgan (professor), Canadian professor
- Edgar Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Edward Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Elaine Morgan (writer), Welsh writer, advocate of the aquatic ape hypothesis
- Eoin Morgan, Irish cricketer
- Frank Morgan (1890–1949), American actor
- Frederick E. Morgan, British lieutenant-general in the Second World War
- Garrett A. Morgan (1877–1963), African American inventor
- Gavin Morgan (born 1976), Canadian ice hockey player
- George Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Gerry Morgan (born 1953), Canadian entrepreneur
- Gladys Morgan (1898–1983), Welsh comedian
- Gramps Morgan, real name Roy Morgan, Jamaican American reggae artist
- Harry Morgan (1915–2011), American actor best known for his role in the TV series M*A*S*H
- Henry Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Huey Morgan, American musician, founder member and guitarist of the Fun Lovin' Criminals
- Ian Morgan, English professional footballer
- Isabel Morgan (marr. Mountain), American virologist at Johns Hopkins, daughter of Thomas Hunt Morgan
- Ivor Morgan, Welsh international rugby union player
- J. P. Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- J. R. Morgan, British academic and author
- Jacques de Morgan, French geologist, archeologist and discoverer of the Hammurabi Code
- James Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Jason Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Jedediah Morgan (1774-1826), New York politician
- Jeffrey Dean Morgan (born 1966), American actor
- Jim Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Jimmy Morgan, English footballer and Royal Marines Commando
- Joe Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Joe Morgan (born 1943), American Hall of Fame baseball player and sportscaster
- John Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Joseph Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Josh Morgan, NFL wide receiver
- Julia Morgan, American architect
- Julie Morgan, Labour MP for Cardiff North
- Junius Spencer Morgan, American banker and financier
- Justin Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Katie Morgan, American pornographic actress
- Keith Morgan (judoka), Canadian judoka
- Kenneth O. Morgan, Welsh historian
- Kevin Morgan (disambiguation), multiple people
- Laza Morgan, real name Otiyah Morgan, Jamaican American solo singer, also in hip hop band LMS
- Lee Morgan (1938-1972), jazz trumpeter
- Lewis H. Morgan (1818-1881), American politician and anthropologist
- Lewis L. Morgan (1876-1950), Louisiana politician
- Lionel Morgan (disambiguation), multiple people
- Lorin Morgan-Richards, author/publisher of Welsh descent
- Lorrie Morgan, country music singer
- Nathan Morgan, English long jumper
- Marabel Morgan, American author
- Matt Morgan, American professional wrestler
- Michael Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Michèle Morgan (1920–2016), French film and television actress
- Michelle Morgan (disambiguation), several people named Michele and Michelle
- Middy Morgan (1828–1892), Irish-born American journalist
- Mohammed Said Hersi Morgan, Somali warlord
- Olly Morgan, England and Gloucester Rugby Union player
- Paul Morgan (disambiguation), multiple people
- Peter Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Piers Morgan, British journalist and broadcaster
- Raphael Morgan, Jamaican-American priest of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and thought to be the first Black Orthodox clergyman in America
- Read Morgan, American actor
- Rhodri Morgan, First Minister of Wales
- Richard Morgan (disambiguation), multiple people
- Richie Morgan, Welsh footballer and manager
- Robert Burren Morgan, American politician
- Robert W. Morgan, American adventurer, first man to descend the Gauley and Meadow rivers in West Virginia, founded Morgan's Canoe Livery
- Ryan Morgan, Australian Rugby League player
- Sally Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Shaun Morgan, lead singer of the band Seether
- Sheryl Morgan, sprinter
- Simon Morgan, English football (soccer) player
- S. M. Morgan, Jr., American state legislator
- Stanley Morgan (author), English actor & author
- Stanley Morgan, wide receiver in American gridiron football
- Steve Morgan (footballer), English footballer
- Sylvanus Morgan (1620 – March 27, 1693), English arms-painter and author
- Ted Morgan (boxer), New Zealand boxer
- Ted Morgan (writer) (born 1932), French-American biographer, journalist, and historian
- Teddy Morgan, Welsh international rugby union player
- Terence Morgan (1921–2005), English actor
- Thomas Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Tom Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Tracy Morgan, American actor and comedian
- Trevor Morgan (disambiguation), several people
- Wallace Morgan, World War I artist in the United States Army Art Program
- Wes Morgan, Jamaican footballer
- Widow Morgan, a founding settler of Norwalk, Connecticut
- William Morgan (disambiguation), several people
Fictional characters
- Dexter Morgan, fictional serial killer
- Trevor Morgan in the British soap opera EastEnders
- Alice Morgan in the British crime drama Luther
- Derek Morgan in the American crime drama Criminal Minds
- Organ Morgan in Dylan Thomas' Under Milk Wood
- Kendrix Morgan in Power Rangers Lost Galaxy
- Kate Morgan, lead character in 24: Live Another Day
- Henry Morgan,lead character of Forever TV series
- Jason Morgan (General Hospital), Mob Enforcer on the ABC Daytime Soap Opera General Hospital
- Samara Morgan, fictional supernatural serial killer in The Ring
- Jenna Morgan from Arthur
- Nwabudike Morgan, CEO (and, by extension, leader) of the faction Morgan Industries in Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri.
See also
References
- Data Wales: Morgan, a Welsh name of great antiquity
- Internet surname database: Morgan
- Wiki Name
- Abella, Alex. 2000 The Great American: A Novel. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-7432-0548-0
- Crawford, Donald 1997 Michael and Natasha. Scribner. ISBN 0-684-83430-8
- Pope, Dudley 2001 Harry Morgan's Way: The Biography of Sir Henry Morgan 1635-1684 House of Stratus ISBN 1-84232-482-9
- Strouse, Jean 2000 Morgan: American Financier. Harper Perennial. ISBN 0-06-095589-9
- ↑ A Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-280050-7.
- ↑ Black, George Fraser (1 January 1962). "The surnames of Scotland, their origin meaning and history /". New York :.
- ↑ Tongue, Ruth L. (1970). Forgotten Folk-Tales of the English Counties. Routledge & Kegan Paul, London, p. 27.
- ↑ "Morgan Surname Meaning and Distribution". forebears.co.uk. Retrieved 23 January 2014