About the MacGarvey Surname

Arms linked to Garvey and its spellings were granted to individual families; our heraldry team traces which line they belonged to.

Family name meaning

Seen on a birth certificate or a ship's manifest, MacGarvey is usually a form of Garvey. Read literally, MacGarvey points to “Descendant of Gairbhith ("rough peace")”.

With its Mac prefix, MacGarvey keeps Garvey intact and marks descent in the older style. Regional accents shaped spellings long before dictionaries fixed them. You may also find the name written O'Garvey and Garvie.

Research your MacGarvey family history with a full surname report and painted coat of arms.