Meacher Surname, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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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 Meacher is O Meachair, derived from the word "michair," which means "hospitable" or "kindly."

Meacher Early Origins

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The surname Meacher was first found in County Tipperary (Irish: Thiobraid Árann), established in the 13th century in South-central Ireland, in the province of Munster, where they traditionally belong to the barony of Ikerrin. The family has retained this area as their homestead as over 50% of them come from here.

Meacher Spelling Variations

The spelling of one's surname was not as important as it is today. Names were recorded as they sounded and in many cases, one's surname changed with each listing. As a result, surnames often had many spelling variations. For Meacher some of these variations included: Maher, O'Meagher, Meagher, O'Maher, Mahir and others.

Meacher Early History

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Meacher research. Another 239 words (17 lines of text) covering the year 1172 is included under the topic Early Meacher History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Meacher Early Notables (pre 1700)

Another 19 words (1 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Meacher Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

The Great Migration

Irish families fled the English-colonized Ireland in record numbers during the 19th century for North America. Many of those destitute families died from disease during, and even shortly after, the long journey. Although those that immigrated before the Great Potato Famine of the 1840s often were granted a tract of land, those that arrived later were generally accommodated in urban centers or in work camps. Those in the urban centers would labor in the manufacturing sector, whereas those in work camps would to build critical infrastructures such as bridges, canals, roads, and railways. Regardless of when these Irish immigrants came to North America, they were critical for the rapid development of the young nations of the United States and Canada. Early immigration and passenger lists have recorded many early immigrants bearing the name of Meacher: Daniel, Edward, James, John, Martin, Michael, Patrick, Robert, Timothy, William Maher, all arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860; Charles, Edward, James, John, Mathew, Patrick, Thomas, Timothy and William Meagher, all arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860..

Contemporary Notables of the name Meacher (post 1700)

Michael Hugh Meacher (1939-2015), British Labour politician and academic, Minister of State for the Environment (1997-2003), Shadow Minister for Environmental Protection (1996-1997)
Robert Meacher (b. 1962), professional Australian rules footballer
Harry Meacher, British actor, director and playwright

Meacher Historic Events

Empress of Ireland

Mr. George William Meacher (1879-1914), Canadian Second Class Passenger from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who was traveling aboard the Empress of Ireland and died in the sinking on May 29th 1914 ^[2]CITATION[CLOSE]
Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 17) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html

Motto

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: In periculis audax
Motto Translation: Bold in danger

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Citations

^ MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)
^ Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 17) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html

Other References

Sullivan, Sir Edward. The Book of Kells 3rd Edition. New York: Crescent Books, 1986. Print. (ISBN 0-517-61987-3).
Grehan, Ida. Dictionary of Irish Family Names. Boulder: Roberts Rinehart, 1997. Print. (ISBN 1-57098-137-X).
Harris, Ruth-Ann and B. Emer O'Keefe. The Search for Missing Friends Irish Immigrant Advertisements Placed in the Boston Pilot Volume II 1851-1853. Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1991. Print.
Zieber, Eugene. Heraldry in America. Philadelphia: Genealogical Publishing Co. Print.
MacLysaght, Edward. Mores Irish Familes. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-0126-0).
Matthews, John. Matthews' American Armoury and Blue Book. London: John Matthews, 1911. Print.
Filby, P. William and Mary K Meyer. Passenger and Immigration Lists Index in Four Volumes. Detroit: Gale Research, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8).
Bullock, L.G. Historical Map of Ireland. Edinburgh: Bartholomew and Son, 1969. Print.
Donovan, George Francis. The Pre-Revolutionary Irish in Massachusetts 1620-1775. Menasha, WI: Geroge Banta Publsihing Co., 1932. Print.
Read, Charles Anderson. The Cabinet of Irish Literature Selections from the Works of the Chief Poets, Orators and Prose Writers of Ireland 4 Volumes. London: Blackie and Son, 1884. Print.
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The Meacher Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Meacher Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname.

This page was last modified on 22 October 2015 at 08:36.