Mahaffy Surname

250,767th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 1,581 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
Northern Ireland

Mahaffy Surname Definition:

This name is of Scottish origin, but since the beginning of the seventeenth century it has been numerous in Ulster. In Gaelic it is Mac Dhuibhshithe. The two anglicized forms given above are the most usual, but it has several other variants and as MacHaffy and MacFie.

Read More About This Surname

Mahaffy Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States9821:369,10332,764
Canada2951:124,90013,053
Northern Ireland1331:13,8721,952
England611:913,41146,955
Australia511:529,32739,816
Scotland291:184,61410,113
Denmark101:564,47234,222
South Africa91:6,019,745157,966
Austria21:4,257,71899,224
Indonesia21:66,124,597756,638
Norway11:5,142,286129,201
Sri Lanka11:20,808,56018,521
Singapore11:5,507,70347,049
Philippines11:101,238,223404,861
Hong Kong11:7,335,48316,643
China11:1,367,321,56651,149
Afghanistan11:32,153,18360,828
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland1761:25,1702,716
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England81:3,046,92180,371
Scotland11:3,743,21632,299
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States5311:94,5749,673

Mahaffy Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This name is of Scottish origin, but since the beginning of the seventeenth century it has been numerous in Ulster. In Gaelic it is Mac Dhuibhshithe. The two anglicized forms given above are the most usual, but it has several other variants and as MacHaffy and MacFie. As MacHaffy it occurs in the Co. Armagh hearth money rolls of 1664; but most records relating to the name find them in Co. Donegal.

John Pentland Mahaffy (1839-1918),provost of Trinity College, Dublin, was famous not only as a scholar but also for his mordant wit. Rev. Daniel MacAfee (1790-1873), a Wesleyan clergyman, was a noted controversialist in his day, especially as an opponent of Daniel O'Connell.

Supplement to Irish Families (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

A Scottish Gaelic name-Mac Dhuibhshithe — also anglicized MacAfee, MacHaffy and MacFie. In Ireland these names mainly belong to Co. Donegal. SIF 108

A Guide to Irish Names (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

User-submitted Reference

Mahaffey is a surname of Scottish origin, and is an Anglicisation of the Gaelic name Mac Dhuibhshithe. It came from Clan Macfie on the island of Colonsay in Scotland, but the clan originated in Ireland. There the name is found largely in County Donegal, although the U.S. boasts the largest Mahaffey population. There are multiple recorded immigrations to the U.S. of Mahaffey families, including an arrival in Charleston of a Martin Hugh Mahaffey, Revolutionary War veteran, and another arrival in Baltimore whose descendants founded Mahaffey, Pennsylvania. The name in Scots Gaelic means "Son of the dark man of peace" (Rarely translated as "Son of the black fairy"). The clan was historically known for their life along the islands on Scotland's western coast and Ireland, although the name Mahaffey is now relatively obscure. To look more into Mahaffey history, look online for information about Clan Macfie, the people from whom Mahaffey originated.

- mahaffey

Mahaffy Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Mahaffy Come From? nationality or country of origin

The last name Mahaffy is found in The United States more than any other country or territory. It may also occur as a variant:. Click here to see other potential spellings of this surname.

How Common Is The Last Name Mahaffy? popularity and diffusion

The surname is the 250,767th most widespread last name in the world. It is borne by approximately 1 in 4,609,453 people. This surname is mostly found in The Americas, where 81 percent of Mahaffy reside; 81 percent reside in North America and 80 percent reside in Anglo-North America.

Mahaffy is most frequent in The United States, where it is held by 982 people, or 1 in 369,103. In The United States it is most common in: Michigan, where 19 percent reside, California, where 10 percent reside and New York, where 10 percent reside. Excluding The United States this surname occurs in 16 countries. It also occurs in Canada, where 19 percent reside and Northern Ireland, where 8 percent reside.

Mahaffy Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The prevalency of Mahaffy has changed over time. In The United States the number of people carrying the Mahaffy last name rose 185 percent between 1880 and 2014; in England it rose 763 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in Scotland it rose 2,900 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Mahaffy Last Name Statistics demography

The religious devotion of those bearing the Mahaffy last name is chiefly Anglican (61%) in Ireland.

In The United States those bearing the Mahaffy surname are 0.53% more likely to be registered with the Democratic Party than The US average, with 53.76% registered with the party.

The amount Mahaffy earn in different countries varies greatly. In South Africa they earn 526.21% more than the national average, earning R 1,488,110 per year; in United States they earn 7.24% more than the national average, earning $46,274 USD per year and in Canada they earn 20.9% more than the national average, earning $60,067 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Mahaffey9311,749/
Mahaffay93122/
Mahaffuy933/
Mahaffiy932/
Mahafy922/
Mahffy921/
Mahaffeey882/
Mahatffey881/
Mahaffeyt881/
Mahaffa8698/
Mahafey8613/
Mahffey8612/
Mahaffe8610/
Mhaffey861/
Mahatfy860/
Mahafay860/
Maffy8313/
Maafy832/
Mahfy831/
Mahaffie80204/
Mahaffee80173/
Mahaffer802/
Mahafeey802/
Mahafehy801/
Mahaffui801/
Maffey77917/
Maffay7720/
Mahafi7714/
Mahafe7712/
Maffoy771/
Maaffi771/
Mashfy771/
Maphay771/
Maaffa771/
Mafhay770/
Mafy7314/
Mahafuj713,028/
Mahafaj7115/
Mahafej719/
Maaafay718/
Mahafij717/
Maphaya715/
Mahafhe713/
Mahafee712/
Maffehy711/
Maafych711/
Maaffei711/
Mahafis711/
Mahfoyz711/
Mahfaya711/
Mauffey711/
Maiphay711/
Mahaife711/
Mahafoj711/
Mhaffiz711/
Mahafie710/
Maafa676,503/
Maffi675,946/
Maafi674,689/
Maffa671,956/
Maffe67749/
Mapha67528/
Mahfi67454/
Mhafi6778/
Maffè6747/
Mafyo6727/
Mafha6716/
Mahafooj6712/
Maafe6710/
Mahfe6710/
Mhafe679/
Mafey679/
Madfy677/
Maphy675/
Moffy675/
Mafiy674/
Mahafuuj674/
Maffé674/
Masfy673/
Mafay673/
Mafoy672/
Mahafaja671/
Mahafeej671/
Mahafees671/
Mahafeuj671/
Maify671/
Meffy671/
Mahaifis671/
Maaffett670/
Mahaphey670/

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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 Mahaffy
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis