McVey
A Gaelic surname that is usually an Anglicized form of an Irish or Scottish name beginning Mac- or Mc-.
The #4,018 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 34,894 Americans shares it.
Etymology
McVey is generally treated as an Anglicized Gaelic surname, one of several spellings built on Mac/Mc- plus a Gaelic personal name. The historical spellings recorded for the name include MacVey, MacVeigh, MacVeagh, MacVay, and related forms, showing that the final element was heard and written in several different ways. The exact original Gaelic source is not always settled in older scholarship, but the name belongs to the broad class of Gaelic patronymics meaning 'son of' a man whose name was rendered in English as Vey/Veigh/Vagh.
History
The surname appears in older records in several interchangeable spellings, which is typical of Gaelic names that were being Anglicized by clerks and ministers. In Irish and Scottish-American contexts, McVey often sits alongside closely related forms such as McVeigh and McVeagh. The scattered historical references suggest that the name was never standardized early, so one family line may appear under more than one spelling over time.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname lists often grouped McVey together with other Gaelic names ending in -vey/-veigh, because spelling was highly fluid before modern recordkeeping.
From the historical record
“Aveigh, MacAvey; MacAvoy, MacEvoy, MacVoy ; Mac Veagh, MacVeigh, MacVey, MacVay, MacVea, Vahy , Veigh; Veasy, Vesey, etc. tTlAC An t3iAX)CAi5, MacVeety, MacVity, MacVeity, etc.”
— Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish names and surnames