McKenna - Irish Surname Origin & Meaning
Irish form: Mac Cionaoith
Meaning: “son of Cionaodh”
Traditional stronghold: Monaghan
Lords of Truagh in north Monaghan.
Pronunciation: muh-KEN-uh; Irish Mac Cionaoith: mok KIN-ee
History of the McKenna name
Mac Cionaoith, 'son of Cionaodh' (the name anglicised elsewhere as Kenneth), were by tradition a Meath family who moved north and became lords of Truagh, the barony in north Monaghan, a position they held from the Middle Ages until the collapse of the Gaelic order. The name is still exceptionally concentrated in Monaghan and adjacent Tyrone, Armagh and Louth. McKennas fought in the Irish brigades of Europe, and one emigrant line reached South America: Juan MacKenna, born in Clogher in 1771, became a hero of Chilean independence, and the Santiago district of Vicuña Mackenna descends from his family.
Variants: MacKenna · Kenna · McKennan
Famous bearers of the name
- Juan MacKenna - Tyrone-born general of Chilean independence under Bernardo O'Higgins.
- Siobhán McKenna - Belfast-born actress, one of the great Irish stage performers of the twentieth century.
- Barney McKenna - Banjo player and founding member of The Dubliners.
- T. P. McKenna - Cavan-born actor of stage and screen.
Related names from the same part of Ireland: Connolly · Duffy · McMahon · McCabe · O'Gorman · Traynor · McArdle · Finn