MCMENEMY-L Archives

From:
Subject: Another O'Donnell branch
Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2000 05:40:08 EDT

Here's a writeup of the McColgan sept of Donegal which may be of interest.
Like the MacMeanmans, who are described in the Papal Letters as
"MacMeanmandomhnaill" or some variant form, the McColgans are described in
the 1609 Inquisition at Liffer as MacColgandonil. As in the case of the
MacMeanmans, I believe the tag ending "donil" after their name indicates they
were yet another branch of the ruling O'Donnell family of Tirconnell.
The name "domhnaill" as found in the MacMeanman entries in the Papal
Letters would have been anglicised to a form similar to "Donal," or "Donil."
Like the MacMeanmans, the McColgans were an ecclesiastical sept, herenaghs of
Donagh parish in the Inishowen Peninsula and in later centuries active in the
higher offices of the church.




The McColgans were an herenagh sept of Donagh parish in the
Inishowen Peninsula, according to Brian Bonner, holding a
"distinguished place in Inis Eogain for many generations in
the ecclesiastical and eductional fields. A member was bishop
of Derry in the eighteenth century. In the previous century
another member of this sept shhed lustre on his native peninsula.
He was Sean Mac Colgan - Joannes Colganus - the famous
Franciscan connected with Donagh and Louvain.
In the Inquistion at Liffer taken in 1609, the name is
rendered "Mackolligandonill".


Donagh Parish:

Herenaghs Mackolligandonill (MacColgan)
or freeholds:

Donoghclantagh parish, containing 15 qrs., of which 3 are church land, one
of which,
Carroghnefarneballibronegan is free to the herenagh of that place called
Mackolligandonill, who paid out of the other three quarters the like rents
proportionably as before, and also 10s Eng. yearly out of his third of the
tithes,
the parson, vicar, tithes and reparis are as in Faughan parish, 2 gorts of
glebe
belong to the vicar, and 1 gort to the keeper of the saint's bell;


When broken into its two sections, the name reveals a probable descent
from the O'Donnells.

Mack Kolligan Donill

or MacColgan Donill

Donill is a tag ending, similar in form to that used by the MacMenimens or
MacMeanmans, who are described in the Papal Letters as MacMeanman O'Donnell or
"Macuicamiranydhomhnaill," "Macmeamnanydomnaill","Macmeanmanydhomhnaill," etc.
The surname, while incredibly corrupt in the Papal Letters, is rendered
"MacMeanman Domnaill," which is identical in form to the MacColgan Donill form
found in the Inquisition at Liffer for the MacColgan herenaghs of Donagh
parish.
Like the MacMeanmans, the MacColgans were an ecclesiastic family, a common
pursuit of branches of the royal family too far removed from the center of
political power to maintain any importance in that arena.
Thhe surname was almost entirely confined to the Inishowen Peninsula in
17th century records. It appears as a principal surname only in that
barony in the Census of 1659.


Census of 1659 - Donegal

Inishowen Barony

Principal Irish Names

O Barr (7), O Brillaghan (23), O Boyle (8), O Cally (22), McCallin (15),
O Callane & O Cullane (12,27), O Conagill (9), O Carran (16), O Currin (3,
19),
O Carny (10), McCollgan (30), McConway (6), O Callaghan (8), O Doghertye
(203),
O Doy (6), O Deuer (8), McDevet (27), O Donell (20), O Dermond (35), O
Deveny (9),
O Farran (14), McGlaghlin (76), O Granny (6), McGillneske (8), O Gollogher
(12),
O Herrall (8), O Hegerty (23), O Harkan (21), O Knawsie (9), O Kelly (11),
McKay (6), O Lunshaghan (22), McLaughlin (63), O Luog (9), O Mrisane (7),
O Moran (6), O Mulloy (7), McMurray (8), O Muncy (8), Porter (11), O
Quigley (25),
O Rodan (13), O Sheale (8), O Towlan (14), McVagh (6).

Totals: Barrony of Enishowen: Eng. & Scots 453; Irish, 2678; 3131 totall.



I thought some of you might find this of interest in light of our fairly
recent discovery
that the MacMeanmans were a branch of the O'Donnells, based primarily on the
form
of their name as it appeared in the Papal Letters, but supported also by the
Annal
entries on the Fer Leginn (Lector) O'Donnell and his grandsons, the
MacMeanmans.

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