Gearty History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

Etymology of Gearty

What does the name Gearty mean?

The Irish name Gearty was originally written in a Gaelic form as Mag Oireachtaigh, which is derived from the word "oireachtach," referring to a member of an assembly. Translating the name into English produces no less than seventeen different synonyms. But the origin of the name is most intriguing. In the 12th century, the name was simply Ó Roduibh but a Oireachtach Ó Roduibh at that time caused the name to be shortened to Oireachtach, their present form. 1

Early Origins of the Gearty family

The surname Gearty was first found in counties Roscommon and Galway (Irish: Gaillimh) part of the province of Connacht, located on the west coast of the Island, where they were one of the Hi Maine Septs in Kelly's country. They were direct descendants of the O'Connors, Kings of Connacht, and the Chief of the Clann was one of the four royal chiefs under the O'Connor. (O'Hart) The tree on the Coat of Arms illustrates their descendancy from the O'Connors.

Early History of the Gearty family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gearty research. Another 78 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1300, 1585, 1598 and 1744 are included under the topic Early Gearty History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gearty Spelling Variations

Pronunciation, rather than spelling, guided scribes and church officials when recording names during the Middle Ages. This practice often resulted in one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname Gearty are preserved in these old documents. The various spellings of the name that were found include Gerrity, Gerty, Gerighty, Gerighaty, Gerety, Gerahty, Garraty, Geraty, Jerety, McGerity, MacGeraghty, MacGartie, MacGarty and many more.

Early Notables of the Gearty family

Another 29 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gearty Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gearty migration to Australia +

Gearty Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Ambrose Gearty, (b. 1806), aged 25, Irish ploughman who was convicted in County Meath, Ireland for 7 years for assault, transported aboard the "Captain Cook" on 5th November 1831, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1835 2
Mr. Owen Gearty, (b. 1806), aged 25, Irish convict who was convicted in County Meath, Ireland for 7 years for assault, transported aboard the "Captain Cook" on 5th November 1831, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Gearty (post 1700) +

Edward J. "Ed" Gearty (1923-2009), American politician, President of the Minnesota Senate
Eugene Gearty, American Academy Award winning sound engineer
William Patrick Gearty, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Illinois, 1960 3
Conor Anthony Gearty KC (Hon), FBA (1957-2025), Irish Professor of Human Rights Law at the London School of Economics

Sources +

MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/captain-cook
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 19) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html