Irish clans are traditional kinship groups sharing a common surname and heritage and existing in a lineage-based society, originating prior to the 17th century. [1] A clan (or fine in Irish, plural finte) included the chief and his patrilineal relatives; [2] however, Irish clans also included unrelated clients of the chief. [3]
Before the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland which took place during the late 12th century, the Irish people were Celts who lived in kinship groups as found recorded in historic manuscripts such as the Irish annals, the Leabhar na nGenealach (the Great Book of Irish Genealogies), the Book of Ballymote, the Great Book of Lecan and Ó Cléirigh Book of Genealogies (the O Clery Book of Genealogies).
The Irish word clann is a borrowing from the Latin planta, meaning 'a plant, an offshoot, offspring, a single child or children, by extension race or descendants'. [4] For instance, the O'Daly family were poetically known as Clann Dalaigh, from a remote ancestor called Dalach. [4]
Clann was used in the later Middle Ages to provide a plural for surnames beginning with Mac meaning 'son of'. [4] For example, "Clann Cárthaigh" meant the men of the MacCarthy family and "Clann Suibhne" meant the men of the MacSweeny family. [4] Clann was also used to denote a subgroup within a wider surname, the descendants of a recent common ancestor, such as the Clann Aodha Buidhe or the O'Neills of Clandeboy, whose ancestor was Aodh Buidhe who died in 1298. [4] Such a "clan", if sufficiently closely related, could have common interests in landownership, but any political power wielded by their chief was territorially based. [4]
From ancient times, Irish society was organised around traditional kinship groups or clans. These clans traced their origins to larger pre-surname population groupings or clans such as Uí Briúin in Connacht, Eóganachta and Dál gCais in Munster, Uí Néill in Ulster, and Fir Domnann in Leinster. [5] Within these larger groupings there tended to be one sept (division) who through war and politics became more powerful than others for a period of time and the leaders of some were accorded the status of royalty in Gaelic Ireland. Some of the more important septs to achieve this power were O'Connor in Connacht, MacCarthy of Desmond and O'Brien of Thomond in Munster, Ó Neill of Clandeboy in Ulster, and MacMorrough Kavanagh in Leinster.
The largely symbolic role of High king of Ireland tended to rotate among the leaders of these royal clans. [6] The larger or more important clans were led by a taoiseach or chief who had the status of royalty and the smaller and more dependent clans were led by chieftains. Under brehon law, the leaders of Irish clans were appointed by their kinsmen as custodians of the clan and were responsible for maintaining and protecting their clan and its property. The clan system formed the basis of society up to the 17th century. [7]
According to T. F. O'Rahilly, in his works Goides and Their Predecessors and later Early Irish History, there were a total of four waves of Celtic invasions of the British Isles and that the first three of these were pre-Gaelic. [8] [9] According to O'Rahilly, these were people who had largely remained unconquered by the Romans whose territory was mostly restricted to the broad plains of England. A larger part of England remained out of the control of the West Germanic people who invaded after the imperial collapse of Roman Britain and who founded the English nation. [10]
O'Rahilly's version of the origins of the Irish, as supported by C. Thomas Cairney and John Grenham is as follows: The first of the Celtic invaders of Ireland were known as the Cruthin who arrived between 800 and 500 BC. [10]
The second wave of Celts to come to Ireland were known as the Erainn and this is supposedly where the Gaelic name for Ireland, Erin, originated from. These people arrived between 500 and 100 BC. They came from the area which is today known as Belgium and had superior iron weaponry, and thus eventually reduced the Irish Cruthin to tributary status. The third wave of Celtic settlement in Ireland came from Continental Europe during the first century BC and this was probably because of pressure from the Romans on the south of Gaul. These people were known as the Dumnonii and gave their name to Devon in England. Their most powerful branch in Ireland was the Laigin who gave their name to Leinster. A branch of the Irish group of the Dumnonii settled just to the south of Dumbarton in Scotland and were the ancestors of the Strathclyde-Britons. [11]
The fourth and last major Celtic settlements in Ireland took place around 50 BC. This was directly because of Roman attempts to dominate the Gauls of Continental Europe. This included, among others, a group known as the Feni who came to Ireland directly from the Continent and according to tradition landed in south Kerry and the Boyne estuary. The earlier inhabitants of the country fiercely resisted the newcomers who were referred to as the Gaeil because they spoke the Gaelic language. The power and influence of the Gaeils gradually spread over the next three centuries, northwards, from Kerry into Tipperary and Limerick, as well as to the west into Galway and Roscommon.[ clarification needed ] By the 5th century they were dominant in most of Ireland and had established dynasties and tribal groups. These groups determined the Irish politics and culture until the Norman invasion of Ireland which took place during the late 12th century. [12]
O'Rahilly's version of history has been questioned by archaeologists and historians who have played down the role of the Cruthin as invaders, including by Ian Adamson. [13] O'Rahilly's history has been entirely unaccepted by some historians including Francis John Byrne. [14] According to Myles Dillon and Nora K. Chadwick, while O'Rahilly's version of history has been accepted by some scholars and dismissed by others, it is an entirely traditional history that he had sourced from Lebor Gabála Érenn which was a historic manuscript written in the 11th century, also known as the Book of the Invasions of Ireland, and not historic facts based on contemporary evidence. [15] J. P. Mallory stated that O'Rahilly has argued that this manuscript showed that the medieval people of Ireland had seen a series of invasions from whom various dynasties and families might have traced their origins to. [16]
According to Mallory, Ireland may have been inhabited by Paleolithic (Old Stone Age) hunters, but that the evidence for this is only a few pieces of flint. [17] The first actual evidence of human residence in Ireland dates to around 8000 BC. [18] Evidence of the first Neolithic farmers in Ireland dates to around 4000 BC. [19] There is little evidence of a warrior elite in Ireland before 1500 BC and evidence for this appears during the Bronze Age where everyone of a wealthy class had weaponry. [20] The Irish language first appeared from between 700/600 BC and 400 AD during the Iron Age. [21] During this time, the Irish people came into contact with Roman traders. [22]
According to the writers of Ulster: An Illustrated History, there is evidence for the Ulaid who are referred to as the Erainn by some genealogists which is also the name given on Ptolemy's map of Ireland which dates from the second century AD for the Iverni who lived in County Cork, as well as being the origin of the name for Ireland. The centre of the Ulaid's land was in the Diocese of Down. The main population group of the Ulaid was the Cruthin whose territory was in the Diocese of Connor and Dromore. There is also evidence for the Loígis in Leinster and the Cíarraige in Munster who also belong to this group and it is possible that their ancestors in Ireland were pre-Celtic. [23] It is also possible to identify from Ptolemy's map the Dál Riata of Antrim who later founded a powerful kingdom in Argyll, Scotland. [24] The 11th century Lebor Gabála Érenn or Book of the Invasions of Ireland, describes a series of failed invasions of Ireland before settlement in the 8th century. [25] However, by the 8th century battles in Ireland were not between the natives and invaders but between tribes and dynasties for control of different parts of the island. [23] Donnchadh Ó Corráin put the evidence for the Irish naitional identity back to the 7th century emphasising the impact that Christianity had on the people there. [26]
In 1002, the Uí Néill lost the high kingship of Ireland to the leader of the Dal gCais or Dalcassians, Brian Boru. It was during the century of declining Uí Néill dominance that surnames first started being used in Ireland. This meant that Ireland was one of the first countries in Europe to start using surnames. Descendants of Niall of the Nine Hostages, who was the ancestor of the Uí Néill dynasty, include people with the surnames O'Boyle, O'Connor and O'Donnell. From the Dal gCais or Dalcassians came the surnames O'Brien and Kennedy. [27]
Within the Gaeil there was distinction between the tribes of the south from those of the north, and also from those of the west. The tribes in the south called themselves the Eoghanacht and in about the year 400 AD they established at Cashel a dynasty which held power throughout most of southern Ireland from the 5th to 12th centuries. The Munster families of O'Sullivan, MacCarthy and O'Connell claim descent from the Eoghanacht. [12]
In the midlands of Ireland, the Gaeil tribes were known as Connachta and their name continues in the modern province of Connacht. The most important of the Connacta tribes was the Uí Néill who claimed descent from Niall of the Nine Hostages. Niall's brothers included Ailill, Brion and Fiachra who were founders of the important Connachta tribes of Ui Ailella, Uí Briúin and Uí Fiachrach. [12]
Although the Eoghanacht and Uí Néill were the most powerful tribal groups in Ireland, there were others who were locally powerful including the Oirialla in the north-east where they controlled what is now the counties of Tyrone, Armagh, Fermanagh and Monaghan. There was also the Ulaidh who inhabited what is now the counties of Down and Antrim. [12]
Within these large areas there were up to 150 small divisions known as Túath and the names of many of these are reflected today in the names of the Irish baronies that make up the modern counties. Each Túath had a ruler or petty king who owed allegiance to a more powerful king who was over-king of three or more Túath. This over-king would in turn be subordinate to the king of a province, usually either the Eoghanacht or Uí Néill. [12]
The succession of kings or chiefs was governed by a system known as Tanistry whereby after a chief had died, the new chief would be elected from all paternal cousins descended from a patrilineal grandfather or great-grandfather. [28] [29] However, according to Eoin MacNeill, the system known as Tanistry which also took place before the position of king or chief had become vacant is not found in records until the time of feudalism in Ireland which was not until the time of the Normans, and it was preceded by the similar system known as Rigdomna but which took place only after the position of king or chief had become vacant. [29] This theory however, was disputed by Gearóid Mac Niocaill who stated that there is no good evidence to support that the usage of the term Rigdomna in early medieval Ireland was any different to that of tanaise (Tanistry) in late medieval Ireland and that the two terms were synonymous with each other. Although Mac Niocaill did state that MacNeill was correct in identifying a number of cases where Rigdomna was limited to a four generation group in early medieval Ireland but in late medieval Ireland it was almost always the son, brother or nephew of the king. [30]
As per O'Rahilly's doctrine, the Cruthin were the first Celts to settle in Ireland between about 800 and 500 BC. [31] In line with this, according to Cairney, from them descended the following Irish tribes. Although it is not possible to prove O'Rahilly's history of the four Celtic invasions of Ireland or that the Cruthin were the first of these invasions, or that the following Irish tribes descended from them, according to historian Sean Duffy, the existence of all three of the following Irish tribes in around the 7th century is supported by the literature of the time that came to Ireland with Christianity. [32]
As per O'Rahilly's doctrine, the Erainn were the second wave of Celts to settle in Ireland between about 500 and 100 BC. [35] In line with this, according to Cairney, from them descended the following Irish tribes. Although it is not possible to prove O'Rahilly's history of the four Celtic invasions of Ireland or that the Erainn were the second of these invasions, or that the following Irish tribes descended from them, according to historian Sean Duffy, with the exception of the Clann Choinleagain, the existence of all of the following Irish tribes in around the 7th century is supported by the literature of the time that came to Ireland with Christianity. [32]
As per O'Rahilly's doctrine, the Dumnonii or Laigin were the third wave of Celts to settle in Ireland during the first century BC. [46] In line with this, according to Cairney, from them descended the following Irish tribes. Although it is not possible to prove O'Rahilly's history of the four Celtic invasions of Ireland or that the Dumnonii or Laigin were the third of these invasions, or that the following Irish tribes descended from them, according to historian Sean Duffy, with the exception of the Ciarraighe Loch na nAirne and the Feara Cualann, the existence of all of the following Irish tribes in around the 7th century is supported by the literature of the time that came to Ireland with Christianity. [32]
As per O'Rahilly's doctrine, the Gaels or Gaeils were the fourth and final wave of Celtic settlement in Ireland which took place during the first century BC. [60] In line with this, according to Cairney, from them descended the following Irish tribes. Although it is not possible to prove O'Rahilly's history of the four Celtic invasions of Ireland or that the Gaels or Gaeils were the fourth of these invasions, or that the following Irish tribes descended from them, according to historian Sean Duffy, with the exception of the Clann Cholmáin, Cineal Laoghaire and the Muintear Tadhagain, the existence of all of the following Irish tribes in around the 7th century is supported by the literature of the time that came to Ireland with Christianity. [32]
Vikings and Normans are Ethnically linked in ancestry from the 9th to 11th centuries and who raided and settled in Britain and Ireland. In Ireland the Vikings became completely Gaelicized and established the first towns. The Normans invaded and conquered England in 1066 and later had similar success invading Ireland in the late 12th century. The Normans were the first people to introduce the mounted knight. In Ireland they were influenced just as much as they themselves influenced and have been described as having become "more Irish than the Irish". [71]
The following three Irish families are believed to be of Viking descent: the Clan Fearghaill whose chiefs were the O'Hallorans, the MacCotters, and the O'Doyles. [71] [upper-alpha 6]
The following surnames found in Ireland are believed to be of Norman origin and to have arrived following the Norman invasion of Ireland: Barry, Branne, Burke, Butler, Condon, Cusak, Dalton, Darcy, de Covcy, Dillon, Fagun, Fitzgerald, MacGibbon, French, Hackett, Jordan, Keating, Lacy, Lynch, MacCostello, Martin, Nugent, Power, Purcell, Rothes, Sarsfield, Wall. [72]
The following surnames are believed to have come to Ireland with the Norman invasion but are believed to have been of Flemish origin: Tobin, Flemming, Prendergast. [72]
The following surnames are believed to have come to Ireland with the Norman invasion but are believed to have been of Welsh origin: Roche, Blake, Joyce, MacQuillan, Rice, Taffe, Walsh, Savage. [72]
In the 16th century, English common law was introduced throughout Ireland, along with a centralised royal administration in which the county and the sheriff replaced the "country" and the clan chief. [73]
When the Kingdom of Ireland was created in 1541, the Dublin administration wanted to involve the Gaelic chiefs into the new entity, creating new titles for them such as the Baron Upper Ossory, Earl of Tyrone, and Baron Inchiquin. In the process, they were granted new coats of arms from 1552. The associated policy of surrender and regrant involved a change to succession to a title by the European system of primogeniture, and not by the Irish tanistry, where a group of male cousins of a chief were eligible to succeed by election.
The early 17th century was a watershed in Ireland. It marked the destruction of Ireland's ancient Gaelic aristocracy following the Tudor re-conquest and cleared the way for the Plantation of Ulster. [74] In 1607 the senior Gaelic chiefs of Ulster left Ireland to recruit support in Spain but failed, and instead eventually arrived in Rome where they remained for the rest of their lives . After this point, the English authorities in Dublin established real control over all of Ireland for the first time, bringing a centralised government to the entire island, and successfully disarmed the native clans and their lordships. [75]
A number of modern Irish clan societies were former or reformed in the latter half of the 20th century.[ citation needed ] Today, such groups are organised in Ireland and in many other parts of the world.[ citation needed ] Several independent Irish clans have sprung up with international affiliation and membership from across the global Irish diaspora for the purposes of helping others with preserving history, culture, and the pursuit of genealogy.[ citation needed ] In 1989, the private organisation Clans of Ireland was formed under the leadership of Rory O'Connor, "Chieftain" of the "O'Connor Kerry Clan", with the purpose of creating and maintaining a register of clans.[ citation needed ]
This article concerns the Gaelic nobility of Ireland from ancient to modern times. It only partly overlaps with Chiefs of the Name because it excludes Scotland and other discussion. It is one of three groups of Irish nobility, the others being those nobles descended from the Hiberno-Normans and those granted titles of nobility in the Peerage of Ireland.
The Cruthin were a people of early medieval Ireland. Their heartland was in Ulster and included parts of the present-day counties of Antrim, Down and Londonderry. They are also said to have lived in parts of Leinster and Connacht. Their name is the Irish equivalent of *Pritanī, the reconstructed native name of the Celtic Britons, and Cruthin was sometimes used to refer to the Picts, but there is a debate among scholars as to the relationship of the Cruthin with the Britons and Picts.
Ulaid or Ulaidh was a Gaelic over-kingdom in north-eastern Ireland during the Middle Ages made up of a confederation of dynastic groups. Alternative names include Ulidia, which is the Latin form of Ulaid, and in Cóiced, Irish for 'the Fifth'. The king of Ulaid was called the rí Ulad or rí in Chóicid.
The Delbna or Delbhna were a Gaelic Irish tribe in Ireland, claiming kinship with the Dál gCais, through descent from Dealbhna son of Cas. Originally one large population, they had a number of branches in Connacht, Meath, and Munster in Ireland.
The Eóganachta were an Irish dynasty centred on Cashel which dominated southern Ireland from the 6/7th to the 10th centuries, and following that, in a restricted form, the Kingdom of Desmond, and its offshoot Carbery, to the late 16th century. By tradition the dynasty was founded by Conall Corc but named after his ancestor Éogan, the firstborn son of the semi-mythological 3rd-century king Ailill Aulom. This dynastic clan-name, for it was never in any sense a 'surname,' should more accurately be restricted to those branches of the royal house which descended from Conall Corc, who established Cashel as his royal seat in the late 5th century.
The Dalcassians are a Gaelic Irish clan, generally accepted by contemporary scholarship as being a branch of the Déisi Muman, that became very powerful in Ireland during the 10th century. Their genealogies claimed descent from Tál Cas. Their known ancestors are the subject of The Expulsion of the Déisi tale and one branch of their blood-line went on to rule the petty kingdom of Dyfed in Wales during the 4th century; probably in alliance with the Roman Emperor Magnus Maximus.
Geoghegan is a surname of Irish origin.
Moloney is a surname of Irish origin. Its Irish translation is Ó Mhaoldomhnaigh of Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh (female). This Irish surname is of true Gaelic stock and is seldom found with the original prefix 'O'. According to historian C. Thomas Cairney, the O'Molonys were one of the chiefly families of the Dal gCais or Dalcassians who were a tribe of the Erainn who were the second wave of Celts to settle in Ireland between about 500 and 100 BC. They were a powerful Dalcassian sept who were Chiefs of Kiltanon near Tulla in County Clare, spreading to the adjoining counties of Limerick and Tipperary, where today they are to be found in their greatest numbers.
The O'Neill dynasty are a lineage of Irish Gaelic origin that held prominent positions and titles in Ireland and elsewhere. As kings of Cenél nEógain, they were historically one of the most prominent family of the Northern Uí Néill, along with the O'Donnell dynasty. Some O'Neills state that their ancestors were kings of Ailech during the Early Middle Ages, as descendants of Niall of the Nine Hostages.
The O'Toole family of County Wicklow, formerly one of the leading clans of Leinster, descended from Tuathal mac Augaire, King of Leinster, of the Uí Muiredaig branch of the Uí Dúnlainge dynasty.
Éile, commonly anglicised as Ely, was a medieval petty kingdom in the southern part of the modern county of Offaly and parts of North Tipperary in Ireland. The historic barony of Eliogarty was once a significant portion of the kingdom.
The O'Byrne family is an Irish clann that descend from Bran mac Máelmórda, King of Leinster, of the Uí Faelain of the Uí Dúnlainge. Before the Norman invasion of Ireland they began to colonise south Wicklow. There are many famous people with this Irish last name. This includes Anna O’Byrne, an Australian singer and actress, and Anna Marie O’Byrne, an American model.
The Síol Muireadaigh or Síol Muireadhaigh, was a leading sept of the Connachta group of Gaelic dynasties in medieval Ireland. The name Síol Muireadaigh was also used to refer to the territory occupied by the group which was centered around the ancient royal site of Cruachan on the plains of Connacht in County Roscommon.
Tully is a surname of Irish origin, with spelling variations that include Tally, Talley, Tilly, MacTully, MacTilly, MacAtilla, O'Multilly, O'Multully, MacCantully, and Flood. These names are anglicisations of the following Irish names: Ó Taithligh, Ó Maoltuile, Mac Maoltuile, Mac Taichligh, and Mac an Tuile. Mac an Tuile is a corruption of Mac Maoltuile, and has also been anglicised as Flood due to "tuile" in Irish meaning "flood".
Ó hAonghusa is the surname of at least two distinct Gaelic-Irish families. It is now anglicised as Hennessy and Hennessey.
O'Kelly is an Irish surname and the name of a number of distinct sept families in Ireland. The most prominent of these is the O'Kelly sept who were the chiefly family of the Uí Maine in Connacht. Another sept is that of the kingdom of Brega, descended from the Uí Néill. A more minor sept of O'Kelly was that descended from the Uí Máil; this sept is referred to in Irish as the Uí Ceallaig Cualann, in reference to the region of their origin, Cualu.
The O'Brien dynasty was an Irish Clan and noble house of Munster, founded in the 10th century by Brian Boru of the Dál gCais (Dalcassians). After becoming King of Munster, through conquest he established himself as Ard Rí na hÉireann. Brian's descendants thus carried the name Ó Briain, continuing to rule the Kingdom of Munster until the 12th century where their territory had shrunk to the Kingdom of Thomond which they would hold for just under five centuries.
The Cenél nEógain or Kinel-Owen are a branch of the Northern Uí Néill, who claim descent from Eógan mac Néill, son of Niall of the Nine Hostages. Originally their power-base was in Inishowen, with their capital at Ailech, in modern-day County Donegal in what is now the west of Ulster. Under pressure from the Cenél Conaill, they gradually spread their influence eastwards into modern counties Tyrone and Londonderry, pushing aside the Cruithin east of the River Bann, and encroaching on the Airgiallan tribes west of Lough Neagh. By the 11th century their power-base had moved from Ailech to Tullyhogue outside Cookstown, County Tyrone. By the 12th century the Cenél Conaill conquered Inishowen; however, it mattered little to the Cenél nEóghain as they had established a powerful over-kingdom in the east that had become known as Tír Eoghain, or the "Land of Owen", preserved in the modern-day name of County Tyrone.
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