Irish Pugh Research

During the pandemic I had time to review on-line records for Pugh/Pew/Pue (and variations) of Ireland, to see if I could find any that could be related to my Pugh/Pews of County Meath, and to determine where they originally came from. This was very interesting, however, I was not able to find a connection in other counties or a DNA match. 
I have also been connecting with others who are researching the Pugh name in Ireland, in hopes this information may be of help to others.  In my experience, the name is poorly or partially understood. Many assume it's derived from the Welsh- ap Hugh- and some are. Many assume it's Scots- Irish- and some are. Many assume it's French- from the Huguenots- and some are. My family's story is that they came from France during a time of religious persecution of Catholics and my aunt believes it was just before the French Revolution. Apparently they left their land behind. Why they would leave their country for another country that was also persecuting Catholics is puzzling to me. However, they may have had family there and the persecution was not at the same level. Not finding a connection with any other Pugh families leads me to believe there may be some truth in our family story. 

I will slowly be adding my research by county. If anyone is interested to see the actual data, I would be happy to send the excel spread sheets/records if you contact me at dmeade10@hotmail.com

Connaught
Galway
Leitrim
Mayo
Roscommon
Sligo

Leinster
Carlow
Dublin
Kildare
Kilkenny
Laois
Longford
Louth
Meath-see County Meath
Offaly
Westmeath
Wexford
Wicklow

Munster
Clare
Cork
Kerry- not enough for a timeline
Limerick
Tipperary
Waterford

Ulster
Antrim
Armagh
Cavan
Derry
Donegal
Donegal Petty Sessions
Down RC
Down COI
Fermanaugh-no records
Monaghan
Tyrone

Pughs in the Military/Sailors