Show ContentsNall History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The original Gaelic form of Nall was Mac an Fhailghigh, which is derived from the word failgheach, which means poor man.

Early Origins of the Nall family

The surname Nall was first found in counties Armagh and Monaghan (Irish: Muineachán) located in the Northern part of the Republic of Ireland in the province of Ulster, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Nall family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Nall research. Another 100 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1120, 1653, 1680 and 1697 are included under the topic Early Nall History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Nall Spelling Variations

People who were accounted for by scribes and church officials often had their name recorded many different ways because pronunciation was the only guide those scribes and church officials had to go by. This resulted in the problem of one person's name being recorded under several different variations, creating the illusion of more than one person. Among the many spelling variations of the surname Nall that are preserved in archival documents are McNally, McAnully, McAnalley, McAnally and others.

Early Notables of the Nall family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was

  • Ulick Nally (fl. 1680-1697), Irish parish priest in Tuam, County Galway who posed as a servant to avoid arrest and thereby was able to successfully attend to the spiritual needs of his flock

Nall Ranking

In the United States, the name Nall is the 4,389th most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 1


United States Nall migration to the United States +

Ireland became inhospitable for many native Irish families in the 19th centuries. Poverty, lack of opportunities, high rents, and discrimination forced thousands to leave the island for North America. The largest exodus of Irish settlers occurred with the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. For these immigrants the journey to British North America and the United States was long and dangerous and many did not live to see the shores of those new lands. Those who did make it were essential to the development of what would become two of the wealthiest and most powerful nations of the world. These Irish immigrants were not only important for peopling the new settlements and cities, they also provided the manpower needed for the many industrial and agricultural projects so essential to these growing nations. Immigration and passenger lists have documented the arrival of various people bearing the name Nall to North America:

Nall Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • William Nall, who landed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1696 2
Nall Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Jos. Nall, aged 30, who landed in America, in 1893
  • Mr. Gottfried Nall, aged 17, German settler who arrived in New York in 1893 aboard the ship "Westernland" 3
  • M E Nall, aged 35, who immigrated to the United States, in 1894
  • James Nall, aged 44, who settled in America, in 1894
Nall Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Lirjeo Nall, aged 30, who settled in America from London, England, in 1905
  • Brife Nall, aged 9, who settled in America from London, England, in 1905
  • George Nall, aged 45, who landed in America from Hawthorn, England, in 1908
  • Frederick Nall, aged 41, who immigrated to the United States, in 1909
  • F.S. Nall, aged 40, who immigrated to America, in 1910
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Nall (post 1700) +

  • Ryan Nall (b. 1995), American football running back at Oregon State (2014-2017)
  • Nadia Anita Nall (b. 1976), American four-time gold medalist swimmer, active from 1992 to 1995
  • Craig Matthew Nall (b. 1979), American NFL football quarterback who played from 2002 to 2009
  • Nadia Anita Louise Nall (b. 1976), American four-time gold, silver and three-time bronze medalist competitive swimmer
  • Gayil Nall (b. 1953), American interdisciplinary artist and theorist
  • Rashaan Harvey Nall (b. 1980), American actor
  • Loretta Nall, the founder of the United States Marijuana Party
  • Vern W. Nall, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Iowa 1st District, 1942
  • Stella P. Nall, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 1924
  • John T. Nall, American politician, Mayor of Sherman, Texas, 1954
  • ... (Another 4 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. 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)
  3. Germans to America retrieved 21st October 2021. Retrieved from Glazier, Ira. A., and Filby, P. William. Germans to America: Lists of Passengers Arriving at U.S. Ports. Vol. 62, Scholarly Resources Inc, 2240


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