Horkan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• Ireland

Etymology of Horkan

While the Anglicized versions of Irish names are familiar to most people, many Irish names have a long and proud Gaelic heritage that is often unknown. The original Gaelic form of the name Horkan is Ó hArgain.

Early Origins of the Horkan family

Early History of the Horkan family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Horkan research. Another 174 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1715, 1849, 1880 and 1922 are included under the topic Early Horkan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Horkan Spelling Variations

Scribes and church officials, lacking today's standardized spelling rules, recorded names by how they were pronounced. This imprecise guide often led to the misleading result of one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname Horkan are preserved in documents of the family history. The various spellings of the name that were found include Horgan, O'Horgan, Horgon, Hourigan, Horrigan, O'Hourigan, O'Horrigan, Arragan, O'Arragan, Aragan, Harrigan, O'Harrigan and many more.

Early Notables of the Horkan family

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

Migration of the Horkan family

A massive wave of Irish immigrants hit North America during the 19th century. Although many early Irish immigrants made a carefully planned decision to leave left Ireland for the promise of free land, by the 1840s immigrants were fleeing a famine stricken land in desperation. The condition of Ireland during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s can be attributed to a rapidly expanding population and English imperial policies. Those Irish families that arrived in North America were essential to its rapid social, industrial, and economic development. Passenger and immigration lists have revealed a number of early Irish immigrants bearing the name Horkan: John Horgon, who settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1853; Michael and Mary Horgan settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1847; John Horgan settled in Frederick Co. Maryland in 1798.