Tag: Cosgrove Surname Origins

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The Origins and Meaning of the Cosgrove Surname

Introduction

A person’s surname is more than just “a last name.” The surname is often times the family name from a person’s direct paternal line. In many cultures, a family name can often inspire great pride, especially if the family is prominent within a person’s community. While we are often proud of the surnames we carry as our last names, many people may not be aware of the meaning or origins of their surnames beyond maybe the name’s ethnicity or nationality.

I have been studying the Cosgrove surname’s meaning and origin for four years now. To say the research has been a challenging endeavor is a bit of an understatement. While not entirely rare, the surname is uncommon enough to make finding reputable sources has been a difficult task. I wanted to avoid using material from commercial websites, such as those that sell surname histories and coats of arms, as my primary source of information. Their surname histories tended to be woefully incomplete and overly generalized compared to the vast amount of information that actually exists about the name.

Some of the better sources that I discovered during my research include:

The Cosgrove surname’s origins.

People often ask me what is the ethnicity of my “Cosgrove” name.  When I tell them it’s Irish, they immediately tell me it can’t be.  When I ask them what they thought it was, they usually tell me they couldn’t figure it out, hence why they asked me the question. Despite their unfamiliarity with the surname’s ethnicity, they are nonetheless adamant in their shared belief that the name is NOT Irish!

To be fair, “Cosgrove” is actually an English name.  According to Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/name-origin?surname=cosgrove) , Cosgrove is derived from an Old English name “Cof” and another Old English word “graf” for grove or thicket.  An English village by the name Cosgrove exists in Northamptonshire.  It was first referenced in Domesday Book in 1086, about 20 years following the Norman invasion of England.   The name of the village is likely the source of the word the English used as a replacement for the Gaelic name Coscraigh when British authorities began Anglicizing Gaelic surnames in the 1500s-1600s. 

Cosgrove, Northhamptonshire, England (Google Maps)

Coscraigh’s meaning and origins

Coscraigh is derived from the term coscur (or coscar) meaning “victory” or “triumph,” or simply put, victorious.  Most historians, such as O’Hart and Woulfe, use this meaning for the surname in their respective publications. However, I recently discovered that an alternative meaning for the name exists. According to the Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language, it can also mean “slaughter” (http://www.dil.ie/12585). Personally, I prefer the former meaning over the latter.

The name Coscraigh can be found in many of the Irish Annals and other historical texts. We first encounter the name of Coscraigh on the Roll of the Monarchs of Ireland (Since the Milesian Conquest) in John O’Hart’s Irish Pedigrees or the Origin and Stem of the Irish Nation (3rd Edition, 1892).  According to the list, a king named Coscraigh (Crimthann Coscraigh to be exact) began his reign in 292 B.C.  Whether he actually existed or is if the character was just a matter of fabricated folklore is unknown.   While Coscraigh’s appearance on the list of Milesian Monarch is the most “distant” or earliest reference for the name, it is not an isolated occurrence.  Several Irish annals and other historical texts recorded men named Coscraigh, most of whom lived in the 700-1000s A.D. period, on the genealogies of various ancient Irish dynasties.  Dynasties, whose genealogies referenced men named Coscraigh, included :

  • Clan Colla fo Crith – Airchialla (Oriel):  A Coscraigh is listed under the Niallain line in ~700-850 AD;
  • Ui Maine:  A Coscrach is listed as a son of Fithcellach in the ~700s AD period;
  • Ui Briuin Seola – Iar Connacht: A Coscraigh Duinn is listed as a son of Cumascaigh under Ceanfaeladh’s line.  He likely lived in the ~700s AD period;
  • Dal Cais: Coscraigh, son of Lorcan.  Likely lived in the 800s-900s AD period.  Coscraigh’s brother, Cennetig (Kennedy), was King Brian Boru’s father.  Brian Boru was one of Ireland’s greatest heroes after he led the native Irish in victory over the Vikings at the Battle of Clontarf in 1014 A.D; and
  • Niall of the Nine Hostages: Cosgarach, son of Amalagach found in the pedigree for Mageoghegan.

Irish versus Scandinavian Origins.

I have found a couple of websites that suggest the Cosgrove surname may possibly have Scandinavian roots.   However, none of the sites’ owners explained how they came to this shared conclusion nor did they provide any references to source documents regarding the matter.   At the moment, I cannot find any conclusive evidence to suggest that a Scandinavian link exists for the surname.  I can only assume a Scandinavian word similar in spelling or phonetics to Cosgrove or Coscraigh exists that has has caused the various people to assume there was a Scandinavian connection.  

I should also note that all of the Cosgrove men who have conducted Y-DNA testing as part of our Cosgrove Surname Project at Family Tree DNA all belong to the M-269 haplogroup, which is the most common Y-DNA haplogroup among Western European males.  If the Cosgrove surname had Scandinavian roots, its highly probable that the men who carried the name would also have the genetic signatures of Scandinavian men, which is usually form the I Haplogroup.  However, none of the Cosgrove men who have tested to date have tested positive for the I Haplogroup (the most prevalent haplogroup of Scandinavian men).  Thus, I am highly confident that the name Coscraigh is of Irish, and not of Scandinavian, origins.

The next blog posting will explore the different Irish Dynasties that listed either a man named Coscraigh in their pedigrees and/or a Clan Coscraigh among their Clans.