| ![Show Contents]() Herdegan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 Ireland The spelling and overall form of Irish names tend to vary widely over time. The original Gaelic form of the name Herdegan is Ó hArtigain, which connotes a descendant of Art. 1 Early Origins of the Herdegan familyThe surname Herdegan was first found in counties Clare and Limerick (Irish: Luimneach) located in Southwestern Ireland, in the province of Munster, where they held a family seat from ancient times. 2 One of the first records of the family was of Cineth O'Hartigan (died 975), an Irish poet from the north of Ireland, perhaps best known for his "Dinnsenchus," a work which relates the legendary history of the duns, lakes, plains and mountains of Ireland. It gives a prose account of each place, followed by an account in verse. 3 Early History of the Herdegan familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Herdegan research. Another 80 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Herdegan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Herdegan Spelling VariationsLacking standardized spellings, scribes and church officials recorded people's name according to how they sounded. This practice often led to the misleading result of one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname Herdegan are preserved in the archival documents of the period. The various spellings of the name that were found include Hartigan, O'Hartigan, Hartagan, Hartegan, Hartigon, Hartagon and many more. Early Notables of the Herdegan familyMore information is included under the topic Early Herdegan Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Herdegan familySuffering from poverty and racial discrimination, thousands of Irish families left the island in the 19th century for North America aboard cramped passenger ships. The early migrants became settlers of small tracts of land, and those that came later were often employed in the new cities or transitional work camps. The largest influx of Irish settlers occurred with Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s. Although the immigrants from this period were often maligned when they arrived in the United States, they provided the cheap labor that was necessary for the development of that country as an industrial power. Early immigration and passenger lists have revealed many immigrants bearing the name Herdegan: James, Michael, Patrick and Thomas Hartigan arrived in Canada in 1839; Michael Hartigan arrived in Baltimore with his wife and five children in 1820. In Newfoundland, Denis settled in St. John's in 1804.
- O'Hart, John, Irish Pedigrees 5th Edition in 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4)
- MacLysaght, Edward, More Irish Families. Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-0126-0)
- Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
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