McNulty — Irish Surname Origin & Meaning
Irish form: Mac an Ultaigh
Meaning: 'son of the Ulsterman'
Traditional stronghold: Mayo, Donegal
Pronunciation: mick-NUL-tee; Irish Mac an Ultaigh: mock on ULL-tee
History of the McNulty name
McNulty is Mac an Ultaigh, 'son of the Ulsterman', a name thought to have arisen when families of Ulster origin settled, or resettled, among neighbours who identified them by their province. Fittingly, the name has always been most numerous on Ulster's western edge, in Donegal, with a strong secondary presence in Mayo and Sligo, where migrating Ulster families put down roots. It was carried to Britain and America in the great emigrations, and in Irish-American life the McNulty Family troupe were for decades stars of the New York stage and airwaves.
Variants: MacNulty · McAnulty · Nulty
Famous bearers of the name
- John McNulty — Irish-American New Yorker writer celebrated for his Third Avenue saloon stories.
- Ann McNulty — Matriarch of the McNulty Family, famed Irish-American vaudeville performers.
Related names from the same part of Ireland: Walsh · Gallagher · Burke · Boyle · Doherty · Sweeney · O'Donnell · Duffy