Show ContentsMulkey History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

There are multitude of rich histories underlying the many Irish surnames in use today. The name Mulkey originally appeared in Gaelic as Ó Maolchathaigh, which means "a descendant of a devotee of St. Cathach." The surname is not, as is often believed, derived from "cathach," meaning "warlike."

Early Origins of the Mulkey family

The surname Mulkey was first found in County Tipperary (Irish: Thiobraid Árann), established in the 13th century in South-central Ireland, in the province of Munster. 1 They claim descendancy from the Moores, hence the same shield. "John, a younger brother or Roger Caoch who is No. 114 on the 'Moore' pedigree, was the ancestor of Mulcahy." The author continues with a footnote, "From a similarity in the pronunciation of the names, some were of opinion the Maolcaich, who is mentioned in the Stowe Missal, might have been the ancestor of the family. " 2 From these early beginnings, two additional branches were established in Ardpaddeen and in Kilkenny. Of this latter branch, "the ancient fort or rath in the parish of Castleconor, County Sligo known as Rath Maoilcatha, has suggested the idea that this family may have derived their name from the Maolcatha after whom the rath is called; and therefore that they are descended from the royal stock from which branched the O'Connors, Kings of Connaught." 2

Early History of the Mulkey family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Mulkey research. Another 102 words (7 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Mulkey History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mulkey Spelling Variations

Pronunciation, rather than spelling, was what guided scribes and church officials in recording names, a practice that often led to the misleading result of one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname Mulkey are preserved in documents that were examined for evidence of the family's history. The various spellings of Mulkey included Mulcahey, O'Mulcahey, Mulcahy, O'Mulcahy, Mulcahee, Mulkey, McMulkey and many more.

Early Notables of the Mulkey family

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

Mulkey Ranking

In the United States, the name Mulkey is the 4,510th most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 3


United States Mulkey migration to the United States +

Often leaving from racial discrimination and colonial oppression, thousands of families left Ireland in the 19th century for North America aboard passenger ships. Many early immigrants found a plot of land to call their own, something unimaginable for most Irish families. Those that arrived later were often accommodated as laborers since there was a large demand for cheap labor. This was the fate for many of the families that arrived in North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Whether they became agrarian settlers or industrial workers, the Irish that came to North America were invaluable for rapid development of the infant nations of the United States and Canada. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name Mulkey or a variant listed above:

Mulkey Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Mrs. M. Mulkey, aged 34, who settled in America from Tulla, in 1901
  • Frederick W. Mulkey, aged 31, who landed in America, in 1905
  • Margaret Mulkey, aged 39, who landed in America from Ennis, Ireland, in 1907
  • John L. Mulkey, aged 32, who immigrated to the United States, in 1912
  • Edward Mulkey, aged 53, who immigrated to America, in 1919
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Mulkey (post 1700) +

  • Philip Roy Mulkey (1933-2022), American silver medalist track and field athlete at the 1959 Pan American Games
  • William Oscar Mulkey (1871-1943), American Democratic Party politician, Member of Alabama State House of Representatives, 1911; U.S. Representative from Alabama 3rd District, 1914-15 4
  • P. F. Mulkey, American politician, Village President of Western Springs, Illinois, 1935 4
  • John H. Mulkey, American politician, Justice of Illinois State Supreme Court, 1879-88 4
  • Frederick William Mulkey (1874-1924), American Republican politician, U.S. Senator from Oregon, 1907, 1918 4
  • William O. Mulkey (1871-1943), United States Representative from Alabama
  • Frederick W. Mulkey (1874-1924), United States Senator from Oregon


  1. MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)
  2. O'Hart, John, Irish Pedigrees 5th Edition in 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4)
  3. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  4. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 27) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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