Show ContentsHaigen History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Irish names tend to vary widely in their spelling and overall form. The original Gaelic form of the name Haigen is Ó hAgain, which was earlier rendered as Ó hOgain. Traditionally, the name means young. 1

Early Origins of the Haigen family

The surname Haigen was first found in County Tyrone (Irish: Tír Eoghain), the ancient territory of the O'Neills, now in the Province of Ulster, central Northern Ireland, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Haigen family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Haigen research. Another 65 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1612 and 1722 are included under the topic Early Haigen History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Haigen Spelling Variations

Before widespread literacy came to Ireland, a name was often recorded under several different variations during the life of its bearer. Accordingly, numerous spelling variations were revealed in the search for the origin of the name Haigen family name. Variations found include Hagan, Hegan, Hagen, O'Hagan and others.

Early Notables of the Haigen family

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

Migration of the Haigen family

To escape the religious and political discrimination they experienced primarily at the hands of the English, thousands of Irish left their homeland in the 19th century. These migrants typically settled in communities throughout the East Coast of North America, but also joined the wagon trains moving out to the Midwest. Ironically, when the American War of Independence began, many Irish settlers took the side of England, and at the war's conclusion moved north to Canada. These United Empire Loyalists, were granted land along the St. Lawrence River and the Niagara Peninsula. Other Irish immigrants settled in Newfoundland, the Ottawa Valley, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The greatest influx of Irish immigrants, however, came to North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Thousands left Ireland at this time for North America and Australia. Many of those numbers, however, did not live through the long sea passage. These Irish settlers to North America were immediately put to work building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. Irish settlers made an inestimable contribution to the building of the New World. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name Haigen or a variant listed above, including: Agnes Hagan settled in New England in 1802; Alexander, Bernard, Charles, Henry, James, John, Michael, Patrick, Thomas and William Hagan all arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860..



  1. MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)


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