Show ContentsFurry History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Irish surname Furry is an Anglicization of a few different Gaelic names, such as "Ó Faracháin," "Ó Fearáin," and "Ó Forannáin."

Early Origins of the Furry family

The surname Furry was first found in County Donegal (Irish: Dún na nGall), northwest Ireland in the province of Ulster, sometimes referred to as County Tyrconnel.

Early History of the Furry family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Furry research. Another 131 words (9 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Furry History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Furry Spelling Variations

Irish names were rarely spelled consistently in the Middle Ages. Spelling variations of the name Furry dating from that time include Fearon, Feron, Feran, Farren and others.

Early Notables of the Furry family

More information is included under the topic Early Furry Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Furry Ranking

In the United States, the name Furry is the 11,706th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. [1]


United States Furry migration to the United States +

The 19th century saw a great wave of Irish families leaving Ireland for the distant shores of North America and Australia. These families often left their homeland hungry, penniless, and destitute due to the policies of England. Those Irish immigrants that survived the long sea passage initially settled on the eastern seaboard of the continent. Some, however, moved north to a then infant Canada as United Empire Loyalists after ironically serving with the English in the American War of Independence. Others that remained in America later joined the westward migration in search of land. The greatest influx of Irish immigrants, though, came to North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Thousands left Ireland at this time for North America, and those who arrived were immediately put to work building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. In fact, the foundations of today's powerful nations of the United States and Canada were to a larger degree built by the Irish. Archival documents indicate that members of the Furry family relocated to North American shores quite early:

Furry Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • John Furry, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1750 [2]
Furry Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • C W Furry, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1871 [2]

Canada Furry migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Furry Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Geo Furry, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
  • William Furry, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
Furry Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Patrick Furry, aged 20, a farmer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Perseus" in 1834

Contemporary Notables of the name Furry (post 1700) +

  • Wendell Hinkle Furry (1907-1984), American professor of physics at Harvard University
  • Elda Furry (1890-1966), birth name of Hedda Hopper, the American actress and gossip columnist


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. 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)


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