Earlier scholars traced the origin of the name from the word "knowledge" in Irish, possible linked to the family's early prominence as bards to the Gaelic Kings. However, more recent scholars have identified that "uigin" refers to a Norse seafarer or Viking. During Gaelic times, the prefix "Uí" was employed before a name to indicate lineage from a grandson. This particular family is believed to trace their ancestry back to the grandson of Uiginn, who resided in the 11th century, or potentially to an earlier Uiginn, who was a grandson of King Niall of Tara. In contemporary society, the surname has frequently been anglicized to "Higgins" when translated from Irish to English. However, individuals from the higher-ranking branches of the family still maintain the usage of "O'Higgins."
Background The O'Higgins family originated in the
Kingdom of Meath and
Brega which equate to the modern Irish counties of
Meath and
Westmeath. As a
sept of the
Southern Uí Néill their roots in these areas can be traced at least to the 5th century and possibly even earlier. By the 12th century the senior branch of the family had migrated into the
Kingdom of Connacht where they settled and were granted large estates by the
O'Conors in
Sligo at Dooghorne and Monteige in the Barony of
Luighne under the protection of the O'Hara Chiefs and at
Ballynary in the Barony of Tir-Errill under the protection of the MacDonagh Chiefs. From the Council of Drom Ceat in 574 AD up to the end of the Gaelic era in the 17th century various members of the O'Higgins clan were hereditary poets (
filés in Irish) in the courts of
Irish Princes and Chiefs. As hereditary poets they were accorded a status of nobility second in rank only to the King and were entitled to wear the same number of colours in their robes. Members of this family came under the patronage of other Irish noble houses particularly
Ó Conor,
Ó Neill, MacDonagh,
Ó Rourke,
Maguire,
Ó Doherty,
Mac Dermot and
Ó Gara. From the 14th to the 17th centuries the O'Higgins were among the most prolific poets in the courts of the Irish Princes.:
Loss of status and migration By 1654, the O'Higgins family had all their Irish estates confiscated by
Oliver Cromwell due to their refusal to submit to the
Parliamentarians. While some members of the family remained in Sligo as tenants on their former lands, others migrated to
Spain where they achieved high offices in service to the
Spanish Crown. The O'Higgins of Ballynary migrated to
Summerhill, County Meath where they lived at
Clondoogan and
Agher and worked for the
Langford family of
Summerhill House. In 1751, one of their number
Ambrose O'Higgins left Summerhill for
Cádiz, Spain from where he went to
Peru and
Chile; he eventually
Hispanicized his name to Ambrosio. In 1788 he became
Royal Governor of Chile. He was
ennobled by King
Charles IV of Spain initially in 1795 as Barón de Ballinar and again in 1796 when he was raised to Marquess of Osorno. His son,
Bernardo O'Higgins was a leader of the
Chilean Patriots in the
Chilean War of Independence and a leading military officer in the
Army of the Andes; Bernardo became the second
Supreme Director of Chile in 1817. His son (1818–1868) was an entrepreneur who also served as a politician. Ambrose O'Higgins' brother, William (who Hispanicized his name to Guillermo) served as a
captain in the
Spanish Army and colonial administrator in
Paraguay. File:Portrait of Ambrosio O'Higgins.jpg|Ambrosio O'Higgins, 1st Marquess of Osorno. File:Ohiggins.jpg|Bernardo O'Higgins (1778-1842), 1st Head of State of Chile. File:Demetrio O´Higgins.jpg|Pedro Demetrio O'Higgins Puga (1818-1868), Chilean Politician and Entrepreneur. The
Ballynary line of the O'Higgins family continued at
Summerhill in
County Meath until 1947.
Sir John Higgins Bt of Monteige, kinsman to the O'Higgins of Ballynary, was knighted and ennobled by
James Francis Edward Stuart in 1724 in return for his services to France. He was senior physician to the King of Spain. His cousin Don Esteban de Iguiño (Stephen Higgins) was a General in the Spanish Colonial Army in the Philippines. ==Notable members of the family==