OENGUS: AENGUS, AONGHUS M.
"OENGUS is the young god of Irish tradition and it is a name borne by many legendary heroes", says Irish Personal Names (O Corrain B Maguire). The name is generally anglicised Aeneas and Eenis, but was sometimes rendered Niece, Neese, and on occasions, Nicholas. Enos still occurs among a number of families in Munster, including the Foleys. Angus is the anglicised form in use in Scotland. We are not, however, told the meaning of this name.
In the course of time this personal name was converted into a surname by placing O and Mac before it. O hAonghuis became Ennis and O hAonghusa became Hennessy. Mag Aonghusa/ Mag Aonghuis is mostly rendered Mac Guinness, but also Ennis, MacCreesh, Mac Neice, Mac Neice, Maginnis, Minnis and Neeson, according to Robert Bell in his Ulster Surnames.
The MacGuinnesses were one of the most important septs in Ulster, who were by the 17th century were Lords of Iveagh in Co. Down.
"In the 16th century, well before the Reformation, many of the MacGuinnesses accepted the Reformation, and indeed there were Protestant MacGuinness bishops of Down and Dromone at that time. The MacGuinness chief of the time was considered by the English Lord Deputy as "the civillest of all the Irish in these parts. However, in 1588 his son joined O'Neill and returned to the rudeness of the country".
In The Irish Fiants Of The Tudor Sovereigns (1522-1603) this surname is variously rendered M'Gennies, M'Gennys, M'Gynnesse, Magenisse, Magneisse, etc., though not yet rendered MacCance.
And how did Mac Aoghuis change to MacCance? The terminal "c" of Mac "drifted" to make Mac Ance into Mac Cance. And if ance is pronounced "an-is" it can be seen to be close enough to MacGuinness and other variant forms.
John McCance, the elder, Dunmurry, Co Antrim, linen draper, made his will on March 15th, 1790. To his wife, son, grandson and granddaughters he left annuities and land. The land was at Drumlough in the parish of Dromore, Knockagoney in the parish of Hollywood, both in Co Down, and at Cullybackey in the Co Antrim parish of Ahoghill. One grandson was named John McCance Stoupe. A subscriber to Lewis's Topographica Dictionary of Ireland (1837) was John McCance, Suffolk, Belfast, and under the heading Dunmurry this dictionary informs us that W. M'Cance Esq., was at Glenville, and J. M'Cance was at Suffolk.
Owners Of Land Of One Acre and Upwards (1876) lists a single M'Cance holding of 271 in Co Waterford, the property of Rev William M'Cance, Belfast, the only one outside Cos Down and Antrim. In the former county there were holdings of 371 acres, 626 acres, and a single acre at Bessbridge Road. In Co Antrim there were five McCance holdings. At the above mentioned Knock agoney there were but three acres; at Cliften, Hollywood, there were 46 acres, while in the Dunmurry locality there were 452 acres at Ladybrook, 59 acres at Larkfield, and 1,011 at Suffolk.
Apart from the belief that the province of Ulster formed an economic, a geographical and a political entity, those unionists of the "three counties" who wanted a nine-county parliament, insisted that the 1912 Ulster's Solemn League and Covenant bound all who signed it not to settle for less. At a gathering in March 1920 in the Ulster club there was "a very strong body of feeling", and a circular was drafted seeking a special meeting of the Ulster Unionist Council. One of those who signed this was Stoupe McCance.
But the McCances were not always on the government's side. Prior to the insurgents taking Ballynahinch in June 1798, their leader, Henry Munro, ordered a strategic evacuation of the hill and the town to avoid encirclement. The order was obeyed with reluctance by Samuel McCance who commanded the pikemen.
Eolai Telefoin na hEireann/ Irish Telephone Directory lists not a single McCance south of the Border, while Northern Ireland's Phone Book has 24.
Lewis's Directory says Dunmurry takes its name from two Danish forts, or raths, in its immediate vicinity. The attested original Irish of this name is Dun Muirigh. Dunmurry also names places in Cos Derry, Carlow and Kildare.