Show ContentsDagent History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Dagent

What does the name Dagent mean?

The ancient Gaelic form of the Irish name Dagent was Ó Dubhaigan. The first portion of the name is the word dubh, which means black; the second portion is likely some obsolete Irish personal name.

Early Origins of the Dagent family

The surname Dagent was first found in County Clare (Irish: An Clár) located on the west coast of Ireland in the province of Munster, where O'DuilAgin, O'Dugan, (or O'Deegan), chief of Muintir ConIochta, a district in the parish of Tomgraney, in the barony of Tullagh.

The family line is directly traceable to Fergus Mor (Fergus the Great). In turn his ancestry is associated with King Ir, brother of the equally famous Heremon. The name was first found near what is now the town of Fermoy, in the territory formerly known as Roche's Country. This territory encompassed the junction of the counties Cork, Tipperary and Waterford. In modern times, the surname is generally found in these three counties.

However, there was another O'Dugan sept in the territory called Ui Maine, also called Hy Many, which spans eastern county Galway and southern county Roscommon. This sept gave their name to the place called Ballyduggan, near Loughrea. 1

Early History of the Dagent family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dagent research. Another 155 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1327, 1813, 1823, 1884 and 1896 are included under the topic Early Dagent History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dagent Spelling Variations

Many different spelling variations of the surname Dagent were found in the archives researched. These included Scribes and church officials generally spelled a name as it sounded; as a result, a person's name could be spelt innumerable ways in his lifetime. Dugan, Duggan, O'Duggan, Dougan, Douggan, Dewgan, Deugan and many more.

Early Notables of the Dagent family

Another 29 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dagent Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Dagent family

North America received thousands of Irish immigrants from the English-ruled Ireland during the 19th century. Once in the United States or what would become Canada, these immigrants quickly contributed to the ongoing settling and industrialization processes. The largest influx of Irish settlers occurred with Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. An exhaustive examination of immigrant and passenger lists has shown many early immigrants bearing the surname of Dagent: James Dugan who settled in New York State in 1775; John Duggen, who arrived in Maryland in 1739; Cornelius Duggin, who arrived in Albany, NY in 1762; John Duggin, who came to Boston in 1765.



  1. MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)


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