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Mullan History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Mullan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

Etymology of Mullan

What does the name Mullan mean?

Today's Irish surnames are underpinned by a multitude of rich histories. The name Mullan originally appeared in Gaelic as either Ó Meallain, Ó Maolain or Mac Maolain. The first surname is derived from the word meall, which means pleasant. The second and third surnames are derived from maol, which means bald.

Early Origins of the Mullan family

The surname Mullan was first found in the province of Connacht (Irish: Connachta, (land of the) descendants of Conn) where the Mullen, Mullin and Mullan spellings were popular. They were descended from the Kings of Connacht and are of the same basic stock as the O'Concannons. Branches were also found in Cork, Limerick, and Clare where the Mullane and Mullins spellings were the most frequent. Some were found north in Ulster and Tyrone and Derry. 1 This latter group is difficult to trace as the Scottish MacMullen or McMullen settled there during Cromwell's Plantation of Ulster.

Early History of the Mullan family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Mullan research. Another 53 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1660, 1720 and 1729 are included under the topic Early Mullan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mullan Spelling Variations

Names from the Middle Ages demonstrate many spelling variations. This is because the recording scribe or church official often decided as to how a person's name was spelt and in what language. Research into the name Mullan revealed many variations, including Mullan, Mullen, Mullin, Mullens, Mullins, O'Mullen, O'Mullan, O'Mullin, McMullen and many more.

Early Notables of the Mullan family

Notable among the family name at this time was

Rev. John McMullen, Bishop of Davenport. On the infamous side, John Mullan, better known as Shane Crossagh Ó Maoláin, was an Irish rapparee/outlaw, who was executed in the 1720s at the Diamond, in Der...

Mullan Ranking

In the United States, the name Mullan is the 16,059^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2

Mullan migration to the United States +

To escape the religious and political discrimination they experienced primarily at the hands of the English, thousands of Irish left their homeland in the 19th century. These migrants typically settled in communities throughout the East Coast of North America, but also joined the wagon trains moving out to the Midwest. Ironically, when the American War of Independence began, many Irish settlers took the side of England, and at the war's conclusion moved north to Canada. These United Empire Loyalists, were granted land along the St. Lawrence River and the Niagara Peninsula. Other Irish immigrants settled in Newfoundland, the Ottawa Valley, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The greatest influx of Irish immigrants, however, came to North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Thousands left Ireland at this time for North America and Australia. Many of those numbers, however, did not live through the long sea passage. These Irish settlers to North America were immediately put to work building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. Irish settlers made an inestimable contribution to the building of the New World. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name Mullan or a variant listed above, including:

Mullan Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Bryan Mullan, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1746 3
Daniel Mullan, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1746 3
Mary Mullan, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1746 3

Mullan Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Patrick Mullan, aged 21, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1803 3
John Mullan, who arrived in Washington County, Pennsylvania in 1804 3
Michael Mullan, who landed in America in 1805 3
Eliza Mullan, who landed in New Jersey in 1811 3
Hannah Mullan, who arrived in New York, NY in 1812 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Mullan migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Mullan Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

James Mullan, aged 20, a tailor, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1833 aboard the brig "Silestria" from Belfast, Ireland
Margaret Mullan, aged 20, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "William" in 1834

Mullan migration to Australia +

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

Mullan Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Miss Jane Mullan, (Mullans) who was convicted in Edinburgh, Scotland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Cadet" on 10th November 1848, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 4

Mullan 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:

Mullan Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. John P. Mullan, (b. 1825), aged 45, British farm labourer travelling from London aboard the ship 'Merope' arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 27th October 1870 5
Mrs. Mary Mullan, (b. 1826), aged 44, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship 'Merope' arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 27th October 1870 5
Mr. John P. Mullan, (b. 1853), aged 17, British farm labourer travelling from London aboard the ship 'Merope' arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 27th October 1870 5
Miss Matilda Mullan, (b. 1861), aged 9, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship 'Merope' arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 27th October 1870 5
Mr. Richard P. Mullan, (b. 1865), aged 5, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship 'Merope' arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 27th October 1870 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Mullan (post 1700) +

Fitzhugh Mullan (1942-2019), American physician, writer, educator, and social activist, member of the National Academy of Medicine
William C. Mullan, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Presidential Elector for Pennsylvania, 1920 6
Leonard B. Mullan, American politician, Mayor of Milwaukie, Oregon, 1952-59 6
John B. Mullan, American Republican politician, Member of New York State Senate 46th District, 1915-21; Postmaster at Rochester, New York, 1921-30 6
George Vincent Mullan (b. 1872), American Republican politician, Law partner of John Purroy Mitchel, 1902-13; Justice of New York Supreme Court 1st District, 1916-27 6
Edward Mullan, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Connecticut, 1904 6
Don G. Mullan, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Iowa, 1948 6
John Mullan (1830-1909), Irish-born, American soldier, explorer and road builder
Brian Mullan (b. 1978), American soccer player
John Mullan (1871-1941), Irish-born, Australian politician
... (Another 7 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Mullan family +

North Sea Flood

Francis Mullan, British traveler aboard the ferry "Princess Victoria" killed in the North Sea Flood, a major storm surge in 1953
Rose Mary Mullan, British traveler aboard the ferry "Princess Victoria" killed in the North Sea Flood, a major storm surge in 1953

Citations +

MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/cadet/
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 27) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html