Hi Greg, please read this. I think it is SO important to how names are pronounced as compared to how they are spelled. My husband's name is Terry McKeighan. We can trace his ancestors back to John McKeighan, b. abt. 1775 in County Antrim, Ireland. My question/comment is this: Terry's distant relative (we've confirmed this) is in his 80's and lives in New Jersey, USA. His mother's maiden name was McKeighen. He remembers that this name was not pronounced like we pronounce it (McKegan -- with a long "e" and hard "g"). He remembers his grandmother and great-aunts pronouncing it Mc"Kitchen". I've read the threads to this inquiry and am intrigued with the thought that how names are pronounced and how they are spelled might be different. This relative's pronunciation of his mother's last name has never left me. It seem to me to be VERY important and almost like a missing link.

I've read Chevelier John Alexander McCaughan's writings. I've for so long wondered how this "for sure" relative of my husband's could have pronounced this name Mc"Kitchen".

The theories on this site seem to point to the very reason this could be: the names were continued to be pronounced in the "old way" even though they were spelled and printed in a new/different way.

Can you shed any new light on this? I appreciate your time and consideration.

Nancy Lee Scott McKeighan