McElwee
A Scottish and Irish surname of Gaelic origin, likely from a personal name meaning “son of Elwee/Elui.”
The #9,074 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 85,715 Americans shares it.
Etymology
McElwee is an Anglicized Gaelic surname with the prefix Mac or Mc, meaning “son of.” The second element is a Gaelic personal name recorded in older forms such as MacElwee and related spellings, though the exact underlying given name is not fully settled in the historical sources. In practice, the name is usually treated as a patronymic surname built on a Gaelic personal name that has undergone heavy Anglicization.
History
The name is found in Irish and Scottish records, especially in the north of Ireland and among families of Scottish background in Ulster. Historical spellings vary widely, reflecting the difficulty of rendering Gaelic sounds in English documents. The surname is relatively uncommon today but remains established in Ireland, Scotland, and later in North America.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname lists group McElwee with a cluster of very similar Gaelic names whose spellings blur together in historical records, which is why the name has so many variant forms.
From the historical record
“Kelvey, Maclleboy, Macll- boy, Macllbwee, Macllwee, MacElwee, MacElvee, Muckil- bouy, MacAboy, MacAvoy, MacEvoy, MacAvey, Gilboy, Gilvoy, Gilloway, Gilwee, Gil- bey, Kilboy, Killby, Kilby, Kilvey, Ilwee, etc.”
— Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish names and surnames