Mcmahon Family History
Mcmahon Name Meaning
Irish: Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Mathghamhna a patronymic from the byname Mathghamhain literally meaning ‘good calf’ a kenning for ‘bear’. This was the name of two (unrelated) chieftain families in counties Clare (Thomond) and Monaghan (the kingdom of Oriel). See also Mahon 1 and Mahoney . In northern Ireland it is sometimes Anglicized as Matthews since Matha was the Irish form of the Biblical name (see McMath ). In Scotland Matheson was used to translate both of these surnames.
Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022