(mAC blofCAix), MacCloskey, MacCluskey, MacLoskey, MacLosky, MacLuskey, Closkey, Cluskey, etc.

[1] Woulfe, Patrick. (1922) Irish names and Surnames. p. 63. Dublin: M.H. Gill & Son. https://archive.org/details/irishnamessurnam00woul/page/62/mode/2up?q=closkey : accessed 17 July 2020.

• “The MacCloskeys of Co. Derry are a branch of the O’Kanes, being descended from Bloskey O’Kane, slayer of Murtagh O’Loughlin – heir to the throne of Ireland in 1196”.[1]
• “Mac Closkey, -Cluskey Mac Bhloscaidh. A branch of the O’Cahans with whom Blascaidh was a favourite forename. Map Derry.[2]

[1] MacLysaght, Edward. (1972) Irish Families; Their Names, Arms, and Origins. 3^rd ed. New York: Crown Publishers. p. 191.

[2] MacLysaght, Edward. (1985) The Surnames of Ireland. 6^th ed. Dublin: Irish Academic Press. p. 47.

“The best known of these in modern times was Dr. MacCloskey, Archbishop of New York, who was created Cardinal in 1875.”[1]

[1] MacLysaght, Edward. (1972) Irish Families; Their Names, Arms, and Origins. 3^rd ed. New York: Crown Publishers. p. 191.

Families by County who received benefits for growing flax in 1796: Flaxgrower Premiums 1796

The link to our DNA project is here.  If you need to order a test, you can purchase through the Guild who offer year round savings. Order your kit: here.  Two distinct haplogroups are evolving from the McCloskey DNA Project: E-m35/E-v13 and M222:

E-m35 is one of four primary DNA haplogroups considered to be the “founding lineages for the Jewish people (www.jewishgen.org)”[1].  In an article about Jewish ancestry of Lowland Scots and Northern Irish, the name McCloskey is specifically named on page 30.[2][3]

[1] Hirschman, Elizabeth C. (2021) DNA Evidence Suggests Many Lowland Scots and Northern Irish Have Jewish Ancestry. IOSR Journal of Humanities and Social Science. 26(6). June. p. 30. https://www.iosrjournals.org/iosr-jhss/papers/Vol.26-Issue6/Series-10/B2606102242.pdf : accessed 09 November 2021.

[2] Ibid. p. 30.

[3] O’Shea, Colm. (2021) Re: Family Tree DNA New McCloskey Project Member. E-mail to Wendy Cosby, 09 November, 06:27.

M222 is a marker revealed by many Big-Y test results and is:

• associated with (but not restricted to) the Uí Néill dynasty of ancient Ireland;
• associated with the closely related Connachta dynasties, the Uí Briúin and Uí Fiachrach[1]*.
• “found as a substantial proportion of the population of Scotland which may indicate substantial settlement from northern Ireland or at least links to it”[2][3].
• found in “areas settled by large numbers of Irish and Scottish emigrants such as North America [who] have a substantial percentage of M222”[4].

Also present is SNP S595 which “arose between 800-1300 ybp, according to YFULL https://www.yfull.com/tree/R-S595/ which gave rise to the surnames Cain, Kane, McNicholl & McReynolds all of which look Scottish.[5]

* The Ui Fiachrach: " The northern and more important, i.e. Ui Fiachrach Muaidhe, were located in north Mayo and Sligo; the other branch (Aidhne) occupied that part of south Galway covered by the small diocese of Kilmacduagh." (MacLysaght)

[1]  O'Neill, Edwin B. and McLaughlin, John D. (2006). "Insights Into the O'Neills of Ireland from DNA Testing". Journal of Genetic Genealogy: accessed 18 July 2020.

[2] Moore LT, McEvoy B, Cape E, Simms K and Bradley DG (2006). "A Y-chromosome signature of hegemony in Gaelic Ireland". American Journal of Human Genetics. 78 (2): 334–8. doi:10.1086/500055. PMC 1380239. PMID 16358217.

[3]  Campbell, K.D. (2007) "Geographic Patterns of Haplogroup R1b in the British Isles" (PDF). Journal of Genetic Genealogy. 3:1–13: accessed 18 July 2020. [link no longer accessible]

[4] Moore, op. cit.

[5] Gleeson, Dr. Maurice. (2020) Sons of Aodh Project. E-mail to Wendy Hallinan. 15 July, 07:52.