The surname (Mc)Gillick is a

patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (more specifically an avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. It is the male equivalent of a matronymic. Patronymics are used, b ...

adopted by a branch of the

Burkes Burkes is a surname. Notable people with the names include: * Ida Burkes or Ida Dorsey (c. 1866–1988), American madam *Wayne Burkes (1929–2020), American politician See also * Burks, surname *Berkes, surname *Birks (surname) *Burke Burke ...

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

, and originates from the Irish ''Mag Uilic'', meaning 'son of Ulick'. ''

Mag Mag, MAG, Mags or mags may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''MAG'' (video game), released in 2010 * ''Mág'' (film), a 1988 Czech film * ''Mag'' (Slovenian magazine), published from 1995 to 2010 * '' The Mag'', a British music magazin ...

'' is a form of ''

Mac Mac or MAC may refer to: Common meanings * Mac (computer), a line of personal computers made by Apple Inc. * Mackintosh, a raincoat made of rubberized cloth * Mac, a prefix to surnames derived from Gaelic languages * McIntosh (apple), a Canadi ...

'' (son) used in old Irish names before

vowel A vowel is a speech sound pronounced without any stricture in the vocal tract, forming the nucleus of a syllable. Vowels are one of the two principal classes of speech sounds, the other being the consonant. Vowels vary in quality, in loudness a ...

s. William is ''Uilliam'' in Gaelic, and 'William the Younger' is ''Uilliam Og''. As time passed, Uilliam Og was contracted to Uilleog, anglicized Ulick, which literally means 'young William', but has also come to mean 'little William'. The name Ulick came into use amongst the Burkes in the 14th century, and was originally peculiar to this family.

Gillick ancestor

The Gillicks have as their

eponym An eponym is a noun after which or for which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. Adjectives derived from the word ''eponym'' include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Eponyms are commonly used for time periods, places, innovati ...

ous ancestor, Ulick de Burgo of Umhall (confused by MacFirbis with Ulick de Burgo of Annaghkeen, a contemporary kinsman), and descend through his son, Henry MacUlick. The deaths of both are recorded in the ''Annals of Loch Cé'': 1343: Ulick son of Richard son of William Liath, the greatest of all the foreign (i.e. Anglo-Norman, not native Irish) youths in Ireland in bounty and prowess, ''quievit''. 1359: Henry son of Ulick son of Richard ''mortuus est''. The descendants of this Henry used MacUlick as a surname, but the

clan A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, a clan may claim descent from a founding member or apical ancestor who serves as a symbol of the clan's unity. Many societie ...

name was MacHenry.

Clan Henry

The 'Division of Connacht and Thomond' places the land of Clan Henry in the barony of

Dunkellin Dunkellin () is a historical barony in eastern County Galway, Ireland. Baronies were mainly cadastral rather than administrative units. They acquired modest local taxation and spending functions in the 19th century before being superseded by ...

, and names among the gentlemen and their castles: *Hubert McEdmund McUllig: Cloghestokin *Richard McUllig: Saeffyne *Ullig Laragh McEdmund and his brethren: Gortenemakyn *Shane McEdmund McUllig: Row *Shane Reowgh: Cragymulgreny *Shane fitzjohn Burke: Manen *Edmund McUllig's sonnes: Cahergeale The ''Composition of Clanricard'' in 1585, states that 'Pobbil Clanhenry' of the east comprised 28 quarters. The principal seat of the MacHenry Burkes was Gortnamackan. This castle is in that townland in the part of the parish of Kilchrist which is in Dunkellin barony. Cahergal also is in that townland of Killogilleen parish. Creggymulgreny is now shortened to

Cregg Castle Cregg is a surname of Irish origin. People with the name include: * C. J. Cregg, a fictional character in TV series ''The West Wing'' * Cathal Cregg, Irish Gaelic footballer *Huey Lewis, American musician (birth name Hugh Anthony Cregg III) *James ...

. These castles form a group in the east of the barony.

Fiants

In the Elizabethan Fiants (1554–1601) there are no less than 51 persons of the name mentioned, spelled in 12 variant forms (usually MacUlick, MacUllock, etc.). The majority of these are in Connacht, mainly

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

, and they frequently appear in association with Burkes, as also do quite a number in

Munster Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...

. There were no (Mc)Gillicks at that time in the

Cavan Cavan ( ; ) is the county town of County Cavan in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The town lies in Ulster, near the border with County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The town is bypassed by the main N3 road (Ireland), N3 road that links Dublin ( ...

–

Meath County Meath ( ; or simply , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is bordered by County Dublin to the southeast, County ...

area. And none are listed as being there in the 1659 census (but Cavan is missing from it). There is only one entry for the name in the Fiants of Henry VIII to Mary: one James Willock, a

kern Kern or KERN may refer to: People * Kern (surname), includes a list of people with the name * Kern (soldier), a light infantry unit in Medieval Irish armies Places * Kern, Alaska, a ghost town in Alaska * Kern, Austria, see Sankt Marienkir ...

(lightly armed fighting man) of Ballybretnagh,

County Westmeath County Westmeath (; or simply ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It formed part of the historic Kingdom of ...

. It was the opinion of

Edward MacLysaght Edgeworth Lysaght, later Edward Anthony Edgeworth Lysaght, and from 1920 Edward MacLysaght (; 6 November 1887 – 4 March 1986) was a genealogist of twentieth-century Ireland. His numerous books on Irish surnames built upon the work of Rev. Pat ...

, first

Chief Herald of Ireland The Genealogical Office is an office of the Government of Ireland containing genealogical records. It includes the Office of the Chief Herald of Ireland (), the authority in Ireland for heraldry. The Chief Herald authorises the granting of arm ...

, that the surname (Mc)Gillick was likely taken to the adjoining counties of Cavan and Meath by migrating kerns of that name, who began families which, in due course, multiplied and originated the considerable number of persons found there in the 1800s.

Breakdown by area

Griffith's Valuation Griffith's Valuation was a boundary and land valuation survey of Ireland completed in 1868. Griffith's background Richard John Griffith started to value land in Scotland, where he spent two years in 1806–1807 valuing terrain through the examin ...

'' (c. 1853), listing land or house holders, shows as follows: County Cavan

Castlerahan Castlerahan () is a barony in County Cavan, Ireland. Baronies were mainly cadastral rather than administrative units. They acquired modest local taxation and spending functions in the 19th century before being superseded by the Local Government ...

: 32 Gillick, 1 McGillick
Clanmahon: 4 Gillick, 0 McGillick
Clonkee: 0 Gillick, 5 McGillick
Loughtree Upper: 1 Gillick, 9 McGillick
Tullygarvey: 3 Gillick, 3 McGillick County Meath
Fore: 7 Gillick, 0 McGillick

Kells Lower Kells Lower (or Lower Kells, ) is a barony in County Meath, Ireland. Location Kells Lower lies to the north of the town of Kells, County Meath and to the east of Lough Ramor. It has an area of . It contains ten civil parishes: Cruicetown, Emlagh ...

: 0 Gillick, 1 McGillick
Kells Upper: 5 Gillick, 4 McGillick
Navan Lower: 0 Gillick, 1 McGillick
Navan Upper: 1 Gillick, 0 McGillick The ''Tithe Applotment Books'' of a generation earlier indicate that all those families were in the same area then. Nineteenth century records show the (Mc)Gillicks to have been then almost exclusively in the Cavan-Meath area.

Frequency of the name in Ireland

In Robert Matheson's ''Special Report on Surnames in Ireland'' is a list showing names having five entries or upwards in the Birth Indexes of 1890. In this list the name (Mc)Gillick appears nine times for the whole of Ireland—eight instances being in County Cavan and one in the province of

. MacLysaght felt that the majority of the (Mc)Gillicks in Connacht and Munster, separated from others of their name who had migrated east, most likely reverted to their original surname of Burke. Presently, apart from instances of families of the name who have moved to Dublin or other large urban centers, the name (Mc)Gillick is practically unknown in Ireland outside the Cavan-Meath area, and even there the name is now very rare due, in large part, to 19th century emigration to England, Scotland, and North America.

Heraldry

Arms: Or, a cross Gules, in the first quarter a lion's head erased Sable, langued Gules. Crest: A demi-catamount rampant guardant proper, ducally gorged and chained Or. Motto: ''Ung Je Serviray'' (One Will I Serve).

People with the surname

Victoria Gillick Victoria D. M. Gillick (''née'' Gudgeon; born 1946, in Hendon) is a British activist and campaigner best known for the eponymous 1985 UK House of Lords ruling that considered whether contraception could be prescribed to under-16s without paren ...

, a Catholic family campaigner *

David Gillick David Gillick (born 9 July 1983, in Dublin) is an Irish international track and field athlete. He began his education in Our Lady's Boys School and attended St Benildus College secondary school in Kilmacud. He studied at Dublin Instit ...

, Irish track and field athlete *

Ernest Gillick Ernest George Gillick (19 November 1874 – 25 September 1951) was a British sculpture, sculptor. Life Gillick was born in Bradford, Yorkshire, on 19 November 1874, the son of a tailor. The family moved to Nottingham, where Gillick was apprenti ...

, British sculptor * James Gillick, British artist *

Liam Gillick Liam Gillick (born 1964) is a British artist. In the 1990s he was one of the informal Young British Artists group; like many of them, he took a degree in fine art from Goldsmiths' College, in London. He was among the artists included in the ...

, British artist *

Mary Gillick Mary Gaskell Gillick ( Tutin; 1881 – 27 January 1965) was a sculptor and medallist, best known for her effigy of Elizabeth II used on coinage in the United Kingdom and elsewhere from 1953 to 1970. Personal life Born Mary Gaskell Tutin in No ...

, British sculptor *

Pat Gillick Lawrence Patrick David Gillick (born August 22, 1937) is an American professional baseball executive. He previously served as the general manager of four MLB teams: the Toronto Blue Jays (1978–1994), Baltimore Orioles ( 1996– 1998), Seattle ...

, American baseball executive *

Torrance Gillick Torrance Gillick (19 May 1915 – 16 December 1971) was a Scottish footballer who played as a winger for Rangers, Everton and Partick Thistle, and for the Scotland national team. Club career Born in Airdrie, Gillick was signed for Rangers ...

, Scottish footballer *

, British sculptor

Sources

Printed Sources

*Griffith, R.; ''General Valuation of Ireland'' *Knox R.Y.; "The de Burgo Clans of Galway" in the ''Journal of the Galway Historical Society'' *MacLysaght E.; ''Irish Surnames'' *Matheson, R.E.; ''Special Report on Surnames in Ireland'' *Pender S.; ''Census of Ireland'', 1659 *Woulfe Rev. P.; ''Irish Names and Surnames''

Genealogical Office Sources

Dublin Grants and Wills to 1858
Fiants (temp. Henry VIII to Elizabeth)
G.O. MS 429
G.O. MS 469
G.O. MS 470
Grants of Arms
Prerogative Wills
Registered Pedigrees
Unofficial Pedigrees {{surname, Gillick English-language surnames House of Burgh