Finan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland
England

The roots of the Finan surname in Ireland are somewhat unclear; it seems that the name was both native Irish Gaelic, and Norman. The Gaelic name "ó Fionnáin" seems to be derived from Gaelic word "fionn, "which means "fair." This Gaelic name has been Anglicized as Finan and Fanning, both of which are also Norman names that came to Ireland in the 12th century.

Early Origins of the Finan family

The surname Finan was first found in County Mayo (Irish: Maigh Eo) located on the West coast of the Republic of Ireland in the province of Connacht, where they were of the Hy Fiachrach Sept. One notable bearer of the personal name who lived several centuries prior to the introduction of hereditary surnames was St. Finan (Finan of Lindisfarne) who died in 661 AD, and achieved repute for his missionary work in England. He was Bishop of Lindisfarne (651-661) and he converted the kings Sigebert of Essex and Peada of the Middle Angles to Christianity. 1

Early History of the Finan family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Finan research. Another 63 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1659, 1847 and 1901 are included under the topic Early Finan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Finan Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Finan, O'Finan, Ofinan, Finane and others.

Early Notables of the Finan family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was

Francis Joseph O'Finan (d. 1847), who was the Bishop of Killala...

Finan migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Finan Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Robert Finan, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1850 2

Finan migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Finan Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Michael Finan, who arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1843

Finan migration to Australia +

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

Finan Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Ann Finan, English convict from Lancaster, who was transported aboard the "Angelina" on April 25, 1844, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia 3
Thomas Finan, aged 26, who arrived in South Australia in 1860 aboard the ship "Schah Jehan"

Contemporary Notables of the name Finan (post 1700) +

Brigadier General Sandra E. Finan, American Commander, Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico
Joseph Albert "Joe" Finan (1927-2006), American radio show host from Butler, Pennsylvania
Richard H. Finan (b. 1934), American Republican politician, Member of the Ohio Senate (1978-2002) 4
John Finan (1898-1984), Irish Clann na Talmhan politician
Nick Finan (b. 1954), former English cricketer
Robert Joseph "Bobby" Finan (1912-1983), Scottish professional football forward
Catherine Finan Kronk, American Republican politician, Candidate in primary for Michigan State House of Representatives from Wayne County 1st District, 1952 5

Citations +

Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
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)
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2014, November 27) Angelina voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1844 with 171 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/angelina/1844
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2013, August 18) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 6) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html