McManus
An Irish surname usually understood as “son of Manus,” with Manus linked to Magnus, meaning “great” or “renowned.”
The #1,498 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 12,913 Americans shares it.
Etymology
McManus is an anglicized Irish patronymic built on mac, meaning “son of,” plus Manus. Most 19th- and early-20th-century surname writers connect Manus with Magnus, the Latin name meaning “great” or “renowned,” so the surname is commonly taken to mean “son of Manus” or more loosely “son of the great one.” Some older writers also treated it as a Gaelic form tied to the idea of greatness or heroism more generally.
History
The surname is well established in Ireland, especially in Ulster, and appears in historical surname lists alongside other major Irish Mac names. It has long been one of the more familiar anglicized Gaelic surnames in English-language records, with spellings such as MacManus and Manus also found. In modern usage McManus is common in Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and diaspora communities in North America.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname dictionaries often glossed Manus as a name connected with “greatness,” which is why McManus was popularly explained as a kind of “son of the great one.”
From the historical record
“McMAHON. (G-aelic.) The son of a bear ; a hero. McMANUS. The son of Manus or Magnus, the great, or re- nowned. McMARTIK The son of Martin, or the warlike. McMASTER. The son of Master. McMULLIK .The son of the miller. McMURROUGH. The son of Murrough or Murrach; MOT, great^ strong, and ach, battle. Mur, a wall…”
— An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names