Menges History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland
Scotland

All Irish surnames have a unique and often romantic meaning. The name Menges originally appeared in Gaelic as Ó Mongain, which is derived from the word mongach, which means hairy. 1

Early Origins of the Menges family

The surname Menges was first found in Connacht (Irish: Connachta, (land of the) descendants of Conn), where they held a family seat and styled as one of the Irish Clanns who were descendants of King Niall of the Nine Hostages. They were descended through Eochy Moyvane, to Niall Mor, his son, the great Niall of the Nine Hostages. Descended was O'Mongain the great chief of the Mangans whose territories included branches in Mayo, Connacht, Cork and Limerick.

Early History of the Menges family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Menges research. Another 83 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1772, 1803 and 1852 are included under the topic Early Menges History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Menges Spelling Variations

Numerous spelling variations of the surname Menges exist. A partial explanation for these variants is that ancient scribes and church officials recorded names as they were pronounced, often resulting in a single person being recorded under several different spellings. Different spellings that were found include Ó Mongain (Gaelic), Mangan, Mongan, Mongin, Mungan, Mungen, Mongun, O'Mongan, O'Mongin, O'Mungen, O'Mongun, O'Mongun, O'Mangan and many more.

Early Notables of the Menges family

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

Menges Ranking

In the United States, the name Menges is the 14,238^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2

Menges migration to the United States +

Irish families began to immigrate to British North America and the United States in the 18th century, but the greatest influx of Irish immigrants came during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. The earlier settlers came to North America after a great deal of consideration and by paying relatively high fees for their passage. These settlers were primarily drawn by the promise of land. Those later settlers that came during the 1840's were trying to escape the conditions of poverty, starvation, disease, and death that had stricken Ireland. Due to the enormity of their numbers and the late date of their arrival, these immigrants primarily became hired laborers instead of homesteading settlers like their predecessors. An exhaustive search of immigration and passenger lists has revealed many Irish immigrants North America bearing the name Menges:

Menges Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Johannes Menges, who landed in New York in 1709-1710 3
Johannes Conrad Menges, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1749 3
Joh Georg Menges, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1749 3
Conrad Menges, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1749 3
Joh Jerg Menges, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1749 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Menges Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Jacob Menges, aged 38, who arrived in Missouri in 1840 3
Anton Menges, who arrived in Galveston, Tex in 1846 aboard the ship "Riga" 3
Mrs. Cath Menges,who arrived in Galveston, Tex in 1846 aboard the ship "Riga" 3
Miss Cath Menges, German who arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1846 aboard the ship "Riga"
Mr. Adam Menges, German who arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1846 aboard the ship "Riga"
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Menges migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Menges Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Jacob Menges, (b. 1836), aged 27, German farm labourer, from Germany travelling from London aboard the ship "Sebastopol" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 21st May 1863 4

Contemporary Notables of the name Menges (post 1700) +

Louis John Menges (1888-1969), American silver medalist soccer player at the 1904 Summer Olympics
Ensign Herbert Hugo Menges (b. 1917), American seaman from Louisville, Kentucky who was killed during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor of 7 December 1941, eponym of the destroyer escort USS Menges (DE-320)
James Menges (b. 1951), American volleyball player, coach and AVP Tournament director
Franklin Menges (1858-1956), American politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania (1925-1931)
Emily Menges (b. 1992), American professional soccer defender in the National Women's Soccer League
Joyce Menges (1948-1967), American actress who was active from 1967 to 1975, best known for her starring role in Now You See Him, Now You Don't (1972)
Herbert Menges OBE (1902-1972), born Siegfried Frederick Herbert Menges, an English conductor and composer of German descent
Isolde Marie Menges (1893-1976), English violinist from Sussex, England, founder of the Menges Quartet in 1931, older sister of Herbert Menges
Axel Menges, German co-founder of Edition Axel Menges, a publishing company specialising in architecture, art and design
Karl Heinrich Menges (1908-1999), German linguist specializing in Altaic languages
... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html