The surname has two different origins: Scottish and Irish.
In Scotland, the name is a habitational name, originally of Norman origin, derived from any of several places called Malleville in Normandy.
The place name Malleville is derived from the Latin elements malum ("bad") and villa ("country house").
In Ireland, the surname is an Anglicisation of the Gaelic Ó Maoilmhichíl, which means "descendant of Maoilmhichil".
The Gaelic personal name Maoilmhichil means "devotee of (Saint) Michael".