MacDwyer Surname
Approximately 17 people bear this surname
MacDwyer Surname Definition:
MacDyer is the more usual spelling, MacDyre being another variant. It is now mainly associated with Glenties in Co. Donegal though it is found also in the northern parts of Connacht. The first reference to the name I have met is to three MacDyers who obtained “pardons” in Co.
Read More About This SurnameMacDwyer Surname Distribution Map
| Place | Incidence | Frequency | Rank in Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 14 | 1:336,353 | 12,021 |
| United States | 2 | 1:181,229,466 | 1,556,795 |
| Canada | 1 | 1:36,845,591 | 464,108 |
MacDwyer Surname Meaning
From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history
MacDyer is the more usual spelling, MacDyre being another variant. It is now mainly associated with Glenties in Co. Donegal though it is found also in the northern parts of Connacht. The first reference to the name I have met is to three MacDyers who obtained “pardons” in Co. Sligo in 1593. I think it is cognate with the well known Donegal name Devir, which, it is true, usually occurs as an O name, but not always: witness, for example, in an inquisition of 1632, a Co. Donegal landowner called Phelim MacDavir a “meere” or native Irishman who, it may be of interest to note, had tenants. MacDuibhir, the Gaelic-Irish form given by Woulfe (who offers no further information on the name), may be accepted as correct. MacDwyer, it would be added, has no connexion with O'Dwyer and is quite distinct from it.
The English occupative surname Dyer appears frequently in mediaeval Irish records as le Deyer etc. but it has no connexion, of course, with the name now under consideration.
*The Patent Rolls of 1373, in a list of leading septs of Thomond and Tipperary, includes the O'Dures. This may be taken as O'Dwyer.
Mac Duibhir Though often written MacDwyer this Donegal name has no connexion with O’Dwyer. Without the prefix Mac, Dyer is mainly found in Cos. Sligo and Roscommon. SIF 61
MacDyer is the more usual spelling, MacDyre being another variant. It is now mainly associated with Glenties in Co. Donegal though it is found also in the northern parts of Connacht. The first reference to the name I have met is to three MacDyers who obtained “pardons” in Co. Sligo in 1593. I think it is cognate with the well known Donegal name Devir, which, it is true, usually occurs as an O name, but not always: witness, for example, in an inquisition of 1632, a Co. Donegal landowner called Phelim MacDavir a “meere” or native Irishman who, it may be of interest to note, had tenants. MacDuibhir, the Gaelic-Irish form given by Woulfe (who offers no further information on the name), may be accepted as correct. MacDwyer, it would be added, has no connexion with O'Dwyer and is quite distinct from it.
The English occupative surname Dyer appears frequently in mediaeval Irish records as le Deyer etc. but it has no connexion, of course, with the name now under consideration.
*The Patent Rolls of 1373, in a list of leading septs of Thomond and Tipperary, includes the O'Dures. This may be taken as O'Dwyer.
Mac Duibhir Though often written MacDwyer this Donegal name has no connexion with O’Dwyer. Without the prefix Mac, Dyer is mainly found in Cos. Sligo and Roscommon. SIF 61
MacDwyer Last Name Facts
Where Does The Last Name MacDwyer Come From? nationality or country of origin
The last name MacDwyer has its highest incidence in Ireland. It may also occur in the variant forms:. For other possible spellings of this surname click here.
How Common Is The Last Name MacDwyer? popularity and diffusion
It is the 4,772,636th most frequently held surname on earth. It is borne by approximately 1 in 428,679,172 people. The surname is predominantly found in Europe, where 82 percent of MacDwyer live; 82 percent live in Northern Europe and 82 percent live in British Isles.
It is most widespread in Ireland, where it is held by 14 people, or 1 in 336,353. In Ireland it is most prevalent in: Munster, where 93 percent reside and Leinster, where 7 percent reside. Apart from Ireland it occurs in 2 countries. It is also common in The United States, where 12 percent reside and Canada, where 6 percent reside.
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Footnotes
- Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
- Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
- Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
- Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
- Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
- Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
- Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to MacDwyer
- To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on FamilySearch, MyHeritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis