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Duffey History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Duffey History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

The original Gaelic form of Duffey was Ó Dubhthaigh. The first portion of the name is the word "dubh," which means "black," while the second portion is likely an obsolete Irish forename. 1

The sept claim descent from the ancient Heremon Kings of Ireland. Through O'Conner Faley, Lords of Offaley (now Offaly), they descend from "Cahir Mor, King of Leinster in the beginning of the second century. He divided his great possessions amongst his thirty sons in a Will called 'The will of Cahir More,' contained in the 'Book of Leacan' and in the 'Book of Balymote.' His posterity formed the principal families in Leinster." 2 O'Duffy was listed as one of these such families.

Early Origins of the Duffey family

The surname Duffey was first found in Connacht (Irish: Connachta, (land of the) descendants of Conn), where they held a family seat from very ancient times, and were one of the many families descended from the great Kings of Ireland called the "Three Collas." Descending from the Clan Colla was Duffy, Lord of Fermanagh.

However, "there are several distinct septs of O'Duffy. One belongs to the parish of Lower Templecrone in the diocese of Raphoe, Co. Donegal, the patron saint of which is the seventh century Saint Dubhthach, or Duffy. The Connacht sept, the centre of whose territory was Lissonnuffy or Lissduffy near Strokestown, named after them, was remarkable for the number of distinguished ecclesiastics it produced." 3

Without a doubt, the oldest records of the family include: Muireadach Ó'Dubthaigh (Murdagh O'Duffy) (1075-1150), Archbishop of Tuam in the county of Connaught and Cadhla Ó'Dubthaigh, (Cele O'Duffy) Archbishop of Tuam, Ambassador to Henry II in 1175. 3

The Monaghan branch of the family were principally found in Attyduffy or Attyduff 2 and "modern statistics show that it is now most numerous name in Co. Monaghan." 1

Early History of the Duffey family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Duffey research. Another 266 words (19 lines of text) covering the years 1075, 1150, 1175, 1501, 1527, 1615, 1671, 1675, 1809 and 1871 are included under the topic Early Duffey History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Duffey Spelling Variations

The Middle Ages saw a great number of spelling variations for surnames common to the Irish landscape. One reason for these variations is the fact that surnames were not rigidly fixed by this period. The following variations for the name Duffey were encountered in the archives: Duffey, Duff, Duffy, O'Duffey, O'Duffy, Duffe, O'Duffe, Doey, Dohey, Doohey, O'Dowey and many more.

Early Notables of the Duffey family

Prominent amongst the family at this time was Father Eugene O'Duffy (c. 1527-1615), preacher and satirist on the apostate bishop Miler Magrath; The Most Reverend Patrick...
Another 26 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Duffey Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Duffey Ranking

In the United States, the name Duffey is the 7,097^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 4

Duffey migration to the United States +

In the 19th century, thousands of Irish left their English-occupied homeland for North America. Like most new world settlers, the Irish initially settled on the eastern shores of the continent but began to move westward with the promise of owning land. The height of this Irish migration came during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. With apparently nothing to lose, Irish people left on ships bound for North America and Australia. Unfortunately a great many of these passengers lost their lives - the only thing many had left - to disease, starvation, and accidents during the long and dangerous journey. Those who did safely arrive in "the land of opportunities" were often used for the hard labor of building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. The Irish were critical to the quick development of the infrastructure of the United States and Canada. Passenger and immigration lists indicate that members of the Duffey family came to North America quite early:

Duffey Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Alice Duffey who landed in Maryland in 1724

Duffey Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Duffey, who arrived in New York, NY in 1811 5
James Duffey, who landed in America in 1842 5
Patrick Duffey, who landed in Washington County, Pennsylvania in 1854 5
Rose Duffey, aged 16, who landed in New York in 1854 5
Anne Duffey, aged 50, who arrived in New York in 1854 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Duffey migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Duffey Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Thomas Duffey, who settled in St. John's, Newfoundland in 1829 6
John Duffey, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Eleanor" in 1834

Duffey migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Duffey Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Michael Duffey, British Convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Batavia" in October 1817, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
Mr. Peter Duffey, English convict who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for life, transported aboard the "Florentia" on 11th August 1830, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
Mr. William Duffey, British Convict who was convicted in Liverpool, Merseyside, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 25th June 1838, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 9
Mr. James Duffey, (b. 1811), aged 30, English sawyer who was convicted in Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, England for 10 years for larceny, transported aboard the "David Clarke" on 3rd June 1841, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land), he died in 1875 10
Mr. Joseph Duffey, British Convict who was convicted in Chester, Cheshire, England for 15 years, transported aboard the "Eden" on 12th March 1842, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Island) 11
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Duffey migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Duffey Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mrs. Elizabeth Duffey, (b. 1828), aged 35, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "David G. Fleming" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 9th December 1863 12
Mr. Gregory Duffey, (b. 1828), aged 35, British labourer travelling from London aboard the ship "David G. Fleming" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 9th December 1863 12
Miss Mary Duffey, (b. 1828), aged 35, British domestic servant travelling from London aboard the ship "David G. Fleming" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 9th December 1863 12
Miss Elizabeth Duffey, (b. 1848), aged 15, British domestic servant travelling from London aboard the ship "David G. Fleming" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 9th December 1863 12
Miss Mary Duffey, (b. 1848), aged 15, British domestic servant travelling from London aboard the ship "David G. Fleming" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 9th December 1863 12
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Duffey (post 1700) +

Arthur Francis Duffey (1879-1955), American track and field athlete who competed at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France
William Simon Duffey Jr. (b. 1952), American jurist, Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia (2004-2018)
Warren Joseph Duffey (1886-1936), American lawyer and politician from Ohio, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Ohio (1933-1936)
Todd Duffey (b. 1974), born Robert Gordon Duffey, American actor, best known for his recurring role in 2001 in Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Joseph Daniel Duffey (1932-2021), American academic, educator, anti-war activist and political appointee, Director of the United States Information Agency (1993-1999)
Eliza Bisbee Duffey, American feminist and writer of the 19th century
Doug Duffey, American singer, songwriter, pianist, bandleader, music arranger, record producer, music publisher, poet, diarist, photographer and visual artist
John Duffey (1934-1996), American Washington DC-based bluegrass music innovator
Joe Duffey (b. 1982), English rugby union footballer

Citations +

MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
O'Hart, John, Irish Pedigrees 5th Edition in 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4)
MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Seary E.R., Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland, Montreal: McGill's-Queen's Universtity Press 1998 ISBN 0-7735-1782-0
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/batavia
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 11th October 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/florentia
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 19th March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/coromandel
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 3rd June 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/david-clarke
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 15th December 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eden
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html