The spelling of the word "McGuigan" is a combination of the Scottish and Irish language phonemes. The first syllable "MCG" signifies the Scottish prefix "Mac," which means "son of." The vowel sound "u" is pronounced using the IPA symbol [ʌ]. Meanwhile, the "GUI" combination is pronounced as [gwee] in the Scottish and Irish language. Lastly, the ending syllable "GAN" is pronounced with a hard "g" sound and [æn] vowel. The full word McGuigan is pronounced as məˈɡwijɡən.
The surname McGuigan is of Irish origin and traces back to the Gaelic language. It is an anglicized form of the Gaelic name Mac Uiginn, meaning son of Uiginn. The Gaelic personal name Uiginn is derived from uig, uige, which means strength or vigor. Therefore, McGuigan can be interpreted as son of strength or son of vigor.