McMahon

McMahon (Irish name: MacMathúna)
Family name
Meaning	"Son of Bear"
Region of origin	Thomond, Oriel,
Language(s) of origin	Gaelic

McMahon or MacMahon (old Irish: MacMathghamha modern Irish: MacMathúna) is an Irish surname.

Two Septs

Two septs arose in Ireland with the surname McMahon, one in the Kingdom of Oriel in the province of Ulster, around modern County Monaghan; the second in Thomond, in the province of Munster, in modern County Clare.

The sept in County Clare descends from Mathgamain mac Cennétig, brother of the High King of Ireland and founder of the O'Brien dynasty, Brian Boru. The McMahons rose to power in 1250 AD, in the Kingdom of Oriel, which roughly evolved into the present day County Monaghan. They were chieftains of the territory for nearly 400 years.

Motto

The motto of the Thomond sept of the McMahons is "Sic Nos Sic Sacra Tuemur" which means "Thus We Defend Our Sacred Rights."

People

"MacMahon" is the family name of the following people:

Chieftains

• Niall McMahon (Ladrannaibh, or the bandit), (early 12th century)
• Ross Bui McMahon (late 16th century)
• Brian Mac Hugh Og of the Dartrey MacMahons (late 16th century)
• Raymond McMahon of the Killyleen McMahons (late 17th century)

Politics

• Sir Henry McMahon (diplomat) (1862–1949), British soldier and High Commissioner in Egypt
• Michael McMahon, former New York City Councilman and current United States Congressman from the 13th district of New York State
• Sir William McMahon (1908–1988), politician, 20th Prime Minister of Australia, father of Julian McMahon

Culture

• Andrew McMahon (born 1982), of the rock bands Jack's Mannequin and Something Corporate
• Ciarán Mac Mathúna (1925–2009), Irish broadcaster
• Ed McMahon (1923–2009), American entertainer known for his work on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
• Geraldine McMahon, British-born harpist and singer of Irish descent
• Gerard McMahon, English singer-songwriter known for the gothic rock anthem "Cry Little Sister" recorded for The Lost Boys film
• Ivor McMahon (1924–1972), English violinist
• Jennifer McMahon (born 1968), American novelist
• Julian McMahon (born 1968), actor, son of former Australian Prime Minister William McMahon
• Kevin McMahon (musician), (born 1953), industrial rock musician
• Séamus mac Pilib Mac Mathghamhna (died 1519), Bishop of Derry
• Sonia McMahon (1932–2010), Australian socialite, widow of William McMahon

Science

• James McMahon (astronomer), American amateur astronomer
• Lee E. McMahon, American computer scientist known for his work on the early Unix operating system and on the McMahon system tournament

Finance

Ken McMahon, Australian Mining Engineer who helped develop the nations mineral boom of the 1960's

Sports

• Brian McMahon (born 1961), Canadian coxswain
• Brigitte McMahon (born 1967), Swiss triathlete
• Daryl McMahon, Irish footballer
• Doc McMahon (1886–1929), Major League Baseball pitcher
• Don McMahon (1930–1987), Major League Baseball pitcher
• Jim McMahon (born 1959), American football player
• Joe McMahon, Tyrone Gaelic footballer
• John McMahon (cricketer), Australian-born cricketer who played in England
• Justin McMahon, Tyrone Gaelic footballer
• Kevin McMahon (athlete) (born 1972), American hammer thrower
• Mike McMahon (disambiguation), multiple persons
• Philip McMahon, Dublin Gaelic Footballer
• Sadie McMahon (1867–1964), Major League Baseball pitcher
• Seánie McMahon, former Clare hurler
• Steve McMahon (born 1961), English footballer
• Tony McMahon, Middlesbrough F.C. defender

Wrestling

The McMahon wrestling family of WWE fame:

• Roderick "Jess" McMahon (1882–1954), boxing and wrestling promoter; father of Vincent James McMahon, grandfather of current chairman Vincent Kennedy McMahon, founder of Capitol Wrestling Corporation
• Vince McMahon, Sr. (1914–1984), wrestling promoter and founder of WWE's immediate predecessor company, the World Wide Wrestling Federation
• Vince McMahon, Jr. (born 1945), Chairman of the Board, CEO and majority shareholder of WWE, Inc.
• Linda McMahon (born 1948), wife of Vince Jr. and former CEO of WWE
• Shane McMahon (born 1970), son of Vince Jr. and former Executive President of WWE Global Media
  • Marissa Mazzola-McMahon (born 1973), wife of Shane
• Stephanie McMahon (born 1976), daughter of Vince Jr. and Executive Vice President of WWE

Other uses

• McMahon, Saskatchewan, a hamlet in Canada
• McMahon Stadium in Calgary, Alberta, Canada
• The McMahon Act or the Atomic Energy Act of 1946
• McMahon-Hussein Correspondence, exchange of letters during World War I concerning the fate of the Middle East
• The McMahon Line, border between Tibet and India agreed to at the 1914 Simla Convention
• McMahon system tournament, tournament pairing system invented for Go competitions

See also

• MacMahon (disambiguation)
• Mathgamain mac Cennétig
• Brian Boru
• County Clare

This page or section lists people with the surname McMahon. If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.

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