GENIRE-L Archives

From: Pat Traynor <>
Subject: IRISH SURNAME SPELLINGS (was; HAVICAN Surname)
Date: Wed, 19 May 1999 13:43:48 -0700

Quoting.....
>Where does the surname HEVICAN fit into this picture?

>Subject: Re: HAVICAN Surname
>>Quoting.....
>>>I am doing research for a friend. Her G-grandfather was William
>>>Patrick Havican of Minnesota whose father was John Havican of Ireland
>>>(or so it is believed). Does anyone know if Havican (Havicon) is an
>>>Irish surname or not?

>>O'Gavaghan, same as Gaughan, more closely associated to Mayo and Roscommon.
>>According to MacLysaght's Surnames of Ireland it's a Roscommon/Galway name.
>> More proper angliciztion is Hevaghan. Havigan is another variant.
and some more................
Gavigan, Gavagan, Gavaghan, Gavican, Gavigin, Gavahan,
Gavihan, Gavin, Gavan, Gaven,...

Many of the modernized names we see were dependent on how the
English decided to translate them from the Gaelic. See DUFFY and
MacAFIE below for example;

>From a list of Scottish Clanns and associated families;

MACFIE
Cathie, McAfee, McAfie,MacAfie, McAphie, McCaffrey, McCafferty,
MacCuish, MacCowis, McDiffie, Macdoffy, McDuffie, MacDuffie,
Duffy, M'Duffie, Dufacius, Makdufie, MacDhubsite, McFeithe,
Makfethe, McFie, MacFie, McFeye, Fee, McFee, McGuffie,
MacGuffie, MacHaffie, Mahaffy, McIphie, McPhee, MacPhee, McPhie,
McPhier, Macphied.

My guess is that HEVICAN is just another spelling variation of
HEVAGHAN.

Don't ever get hung up on a certain spelling of an Irish name or you
may miss out in finding information on your ancestors!
My present-day relatives in Ireland have spelled our name 3 different
ways in their correspondence!!!! So you can imagine what must have
happened to names over a hundred years ago, before the Irish were
allowed to go to school.
In early times there were not nearly as many Irish surnames as
there are today. Some anglicised Irish names have as many as 10
spelling variations.

There is no "official" way to spell a Gaelic name in English, although
the translation KELLY, for Ceallaigh, is one that might be
considered "official", only because there are not many other
ways to spell it in English.

For example, look at the Republic phone directory for the
various popular spellings of the original Irish name; O'GAVAGHAN

HEAVACAN 9 listings
HEVICAN 1
HEVIKEN 1
GAVIGHAN 1
GAVAGHAN 21
GAVAGAN 16
GAVIGAN 104
There are no O'G........ s listed!

Most of these names are in the (07) and (09) areas;
(07/09) are in one book and that area is of Donegal, Sligo, Mayo,
Leitrim, Roscommon, Galway. (09) is south of Donegal Bay.

Another tip; When looking for a surname in a book index, you
must look under O', Mac, Mc, and sometimes just "M" as in
MAGUIRE, besides the name without the prefixes. I have often
missed items by forgetting to look under all the possibilities.

Patrick Traynor, in California's gold-rush country.

This thread:

• IRISH SURNAME SPELLINGS (was; HAVICAN Surname) by Pat Traynor <>