Cullen History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms 

Origins Available: 
  Ireland 
  Scotland 


While many Irish names are familiar, their past incarnations are often shrouded in mystery, reflecting the ancient Gaelic heritage of their bearers. The original Gaelic form of the name Cullen is "Mac Cuilinn" or "Ó Cuilinn," which are from the word "cuileann," which means "holly." 1

They descend from Heber, who with his brother Heremon ruled Ireland. 2 Culen or Colin, son of Indulph, was King of Scotland or Alba (967-71?) "His father, Indulph, was the first king who occupied Edinburgh, up to that time within Anglian Northumbria. " 3

Early Origins of the Cullen family

The surname Cullen was first found in the southeast of Ireland, in the counties of Dublin, Wicklow, and Wexford. Although all but one of the many distinct septs have become extinct, this remaining sept currently provides Ireland with nearly 8000 members, enough to make Cullen the 84th most common name in Ireland.

Descended from Olioll Flann Beag, king of Munster, the Cullens made their original homeland at Glencullen, in Wicklow, and they have remained there to the present day, despite the threat of their more powerful neighbors, the O'Tooles and the O'Byrnes. They were an influential family, as indicated by the inclusion of Cullen of Cullenstown among the leading gentry of Wexford in the Clongowes manuscript of 1598.

Due to the prominence of this sept, a number of similarly-named minor septs also adopted the name Cullen, including O Cuileamhain of south Leinster, which is also rendered Culloon or Culhoun, and Mac Cuilin of Leitrim, which is also Anglicized MacCullen.

Early History of the Cullen family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cullen research. Another 70 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1300, 1516, 1517, 1528, 1531, 1534, 1542, 1659, 1803 and 1878 are included under the topic Early Cullen History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cullen Spelling Variations

Lacking 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 Cullen are preserved in the archival documents of the period. The various spellings of the name that were found include Cullen, Cullan, Cullane, O'Cullen, Cullain, Cullin, Cullon, McCullen, MacCullen, O'Cullane, Culen, Culan, Culain, Cullaine, Culaine, MacCulen, MacCollin, MacColin, O'Colen, O'Collen, O'Cuilin, O'Cuillin, O'Culane, O'Culen, O'Culhoon, O'Culloon, MacCullen, Cullain, Culon, Cullon, Culling and many more.

Early Notables of the Cullen family

Notable among the family name at this time was

Cullen World Ranking

In the United States, the name Cullen is the 1,859th most popular surname with an estimated 17,409 people with that name. 4 However, in Australia, the name Cullen is ranked the 366th most popular surname with an estimated 9,915 people with that name. 5 And in New Zealand, the name Cullen is the 337th popular surname with an estimated 1,881 people with that name. 6 The United Kingdom ranks Cullen as 509th with 12,793 people. 7


Cullen migration to the United States +

Many Irish families boarded ships bound for North America in the middle of 19th century to escape the conditions of poverty and racial discrimination at that time. Although these immigrants often arrived in a destitute state, they went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of the United States and Canada. An inquiry into many immigration and passenger lists has revealed many early immigrants to North America bearing the Cullen family name:

Cullen Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
Cullen Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
Cullen Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
Cullen Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Cullen migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Cullen Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
Cullen Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Cullen migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Cullen Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Cullen 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:

Cullen Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Cullen (post 1700) +


Suggested Readings for the name Cullen +
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