Caughlan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

The name Caughlan has undergone many variations in the time that has passed since its genesis. In Gaelic it appeared as Mac Cochlain or Ó Cochlain. 1

Early Origins of the Caughlan family

The surname Caughlan was first found in Munster where Dealbha, brother of King Blad of Munster, is the traditional ancestor of this family. There were two different septs which have become known as Coughlan: the MacCoughlans, who dwelled in the barony of Garrycastle in Offaly, and the O'Coughlans, who lived in the baronies of Carbery and Ballymore in Cork. In Cork, they occupied the territories known as the baronies of Carbery and Ballymore.

The MacCoughlans were the more important of the two septs until they dissolved and scattered during the 18th century. They were a Dalcassian sept, and their chief was referred to as Chief of Delvin MacCoughlan. In 1858, they were still recorded as landlords at Cloghan, near Banagher, but they vanished within fifty years. However, the O'Coughlans, who were recorded in large numbers at the time of the 1659 census, still continue to be numerous in those territories. This census shows the prefix O to have been largely discarded by that time. The MacCoghlans lost most of their extensive territories during the Anglo Norman invasion of Ireland by Strongbow in 1172, and lost even more during the Cromwellian Invasion in 1641.

Early History of the Caughlan family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Caughlan research. Another 77 words (6 lines of text) covering the year 1590 is included under the topic Early Caughlan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Caughlan Spelling Variations

Official documents, crafted by early scribes and church officials, primarily contained names that were spelled according to their pronunciation. This lead to the problem of one name being recorded under several different variations, creating an illusion that a single person was many people. Among the many spelling variations of the surname Caughlan that are preserved in the archival documents of the time are Coghlan, Coughlan, MacCoughlan, McCoughlan, Coglan, Couglan, Coughlin and many more.

Early Notables of the Caughlan family

More information is included under the topic Early Caughlan Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Caughlan migration to the United States +

In the 18th and 19th centuries hundreds of thousands of Irish people immigrated to North American shores. The early settlers were enticed by the promise of their own land, but they were moderately well off in Ireland when they decided to emigrate. Therefore, they were merely carrying out a long and carefully thought out decision. The 1840s saw the emergence of a very different trend: thousands of extremely desperate people crammed into passenger boats hoping to find any type of opportunity. The Irish of this decade had seen their homeland severely stricken by crop failures which resulted in widespread disease and starvation. At whatever time the Irish immigrants came to North America, they were instrumental in the rapid development of the emerging nations of the United States and what would become known as Canada. An exhaustive search of passenger and immigration lists has revealed many persons bearing the name Caughlan, or one of its variants:

Caughlan Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Francis Caughlan, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1745 2
Michael Caughlan, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1746 2

Caughlan Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

James Caughlan, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1851 2
Mary Caughlan, aged 20, who landed in New York in 1864 2
Pat Caughlan, aged 54, who arrived in New York in 1864 2

Caughlan migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Caughlan Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

John Caughlan, aged 24, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1833 aboard the ship "Hibernia" from Kinsale, Ireland
Mary Caughlan, aged 26, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1833 aboard the ship "Hibernia" from Kinsale, Ireland

Contemporary Notables of the name Caughlan (post 1700) +

Thomas B. Caughlan, American Democratic Party politician, Member of New York State Assembly from New York County 1st District, 1904-06, 1908-14 3

The Caughlan Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Fortis in arduis
Motto Translation: Brave in difficulties.

Citations +

MacLysaght, Edward, Supplement to Irish Families. Baltimore: Genealogical Book Company, 1964. Print.
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 23) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html