Carrey History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The Irish name Carrey originally appeared in Gaelic as Ó Ciardha. 1 However, "Carey" and its spelling variations have also been used as the Anglicized forms of six other Irish patronymics: Ó Ceinin, Ó Ciarain, Mac Giolla Ceire, Ó Carra, Mac Giolla Chathair, and the nearly-extinct MacFhiachra.

Early Origins of the Carrey family

The surname Carrey was first found in the county of Kilkenny (Irish: Cill Chainnigh), the former Kingdom of Osraige (Ossory), located in Southeastern Ireland in the province of Leinster. Today Cary is a barony in County Antrim, Northern Ireland.

Early History of the Carrey family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Carrey research. Another 174 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1300, 1620, 1761, 1784 and 1834 are included under the topic Early Carrey History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Carrey Spelling Variations

The recording of names in Ireland during the Middle Ages was an inconsistent endeavor at best. Since the general population did not know how to read or write, they could only specify how their names should be recorded orally. Research into the name Carrey revealed spelling variations, including Carrie, Carry, Carre, Carie, Carrey, MacCarry, MacHarry, MacHarris, O'Carey, Cary, M'Carrie, Kearey, Kearrie, Keerie, Keery, Keerey, M'Harrie, M'Harry, M'Hary, M'Harie and many more.

Early Notables of the Carrey family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Patrick Carrie, notable Irish patriot. Also, three famous brothers of the Carey name, John Carey, the inventor of the distress rocket for ships, went to London and taught school, becoming a most prolific writer, writing over 50 classics, including short stories and poems. The next brother, William, a painter and engraver, stayed in Dublin...
Another 63 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Carrey Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Carrey Ranking

In France, the name Carrey is the 7,868^th most popular surname with an estimated 1,000 - 1,500 people with that name. 2

Carrey migration to the United States +

Death and immigration greatly reduced Ireland's population in the 19th century. For the native Irish people poverty, hunger, and racial prejudice was common. Therefore, thousands left their homeland to seek opportunity in North America. Those who survived the journey and the quarantine camps to which they arrived, were instrumental towards building the strong developing nations of the United States and the future Canada. By far, the largest influx of Irish settlers occurred with Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s. These were employed as construction or factory workers. An examination of passenger and immigration lists has shown early immigrants bearing the name Carrey:

Carrey Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Carrey, who landed in America in 1819 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Carrey (post 1700) +

James Eugene "Jim" Carrey (b. 1962), Canadian two-time Golden Globe Award winning actor, comedian, impressionist, screenwriter

Citations +

MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)