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Malley History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Malley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

The surname Malley originally appeared in Gaelic as "O Maille."

Early Origins of the Malley family

The surname Malley 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 held a family seat from ancient times.

"The O'Malley's were celebrated Chiefs whose territory comprised the present Baronies of Murrisk and Burrishoole in the County Mayo. The Malleys and O'Malleys are now located principally in the two baronies named, and in that of Erris, in County Mayo. " 1

Early History of the Malley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Malley research. Another 44 words (3 lines of text) covering the years 1503, 1603, 1760, 1843 and 1854 are included under the topic Early Malley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Malley Spelling Variations

Many spelling variations of the surname Malley can be found in the archives. One reason for these variations is that ancient scribes and church officials recorded names as they were pronounced, often resulting in a single person being recorded under several different spellings. The different spellings that were found include Malley, Mallay, Mally, O'Mally, Mailley, O'Malley, O'Mailey, Mailey, Maley, Mealey, Mealley, Meally and many more.

Early Notables of the Malley family

Prominent amongst the family at this time was

Grace O'Malley (1503-1603), a feared and accomplished Irish sea-fearer and leader known as the "queen of pirates." In later years, well known bearers of Malley included: Austin O'Malley (1760-1854), Irish...

Malley Ranking

In the United States, the name Malley is the 4,223^rd most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 2

Malley migration to the United States +

A great mass of Ireland's native population left the island in the 19th century, seeking relief from various forms of social, religious, and economic discrimination. This Irish exodus was primarily to North America. If the migrants survived the long ocean journey, many unfortunately would find more discrimination in the colonies of British North America and the fledgling United States of America. These newly arrived Irish were, however, wanted as a cheap source of labor for the many large agricultural and industrial projects that were essential to the development of what would become two of the wealthiest nations in the western world. Early immigration and passenger lists indicate many people bearing the Malley name:

Malley Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Matt Malley, who arrived in Maryland in 1678 3

Malley Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

James Malley, who landed in New York in 1834 3
Martin Malley, who landed in Ohio in 1853 3
C Malley, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1855 3
Michael, William, Anthony, Hugh, John, Patrick, and Thomas Malley, who all, who arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860
John Malley, who arrived in Mobile, Ala in 1862 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Malley migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Malley Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Patrick Malley, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1843
Miss. Eliza Malley, aged 1 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Progress" departing from the port of New Ross, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle in July 1847 4
Mr. John Malley, aged 18 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Scotland" departing from the port of Cork, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle in June 1847 4
Mr. Patrick Malley, aged 21 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Henry" departing from the port of Donegal, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle in June 1847 4
Miss. Sarah Malley, aged 7 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Progress" departing from the port of New Ross, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle in July 1847 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Malley migration to Australia +

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

Malley Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

John Malley, aged 40, who arrived in South Australia in 1849 aboard the ship "Emily" 5
John Malley, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Emily" in 1849 5
Henry Malley, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Hibernia" in 1851 6
Mary Malley, aged 20, a servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Sea Park"

Malley 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:

Malley Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Michael Malley, (b. 1840), aged 21, Irish farm labourer, from Galway travelling from Bristol aboard the ship "Rhea Sylvia" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 2nd May 1861 7
Mr. John Malley, (b. 1841), aged 20, Irish farm labourer, from Galway travelling from Bristol aboard the ship "Rhea Sylvia" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 2nd May 1861 7
Mr. Malley, Scottish settler travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Storm Cloud" arriving in Bluff, Southland, South Island, New Zealand on 8th December 1862 7
Mrs. Malley, Scottish settler travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Storm Cloud" arriving in Bluff, Southland, South Island, New Zealand on 8th December 1862 7
M. Malley, Scottish settler travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Storm Cloud" arriving in Bluff, Southland, South Island, New Zealand on 8th December 1862 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Malley (post 1700) +

Bill Nathaniel Malley (1934-2023), American production designer and art director, nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Art Direction for the film The Exorcist
Matt Malley, American singer/musician
John F. Malley, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Massachusetts, 1912 8
James F. Malley, American politician, Delegate to New Hampshire State Constitutional Convention from Somersworth 5th Ward, 1948; Delegate to New Hampshire State Constitutional Convention from Somersworth 5th Ward, 1956 8
James E. Malley, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New York, 1928 8
J. R. Malley, American politician, Socialist Labor Candidate for Governor of Ohio, 1910 8
Charles W. Malley, American politician, Candidate for Connecticut State House of Representatives from Waterbury, 1920 8
Ern Malley (1918-1943), fictitious English-born, Australian poet, subject of Australia's most famous literary hoax, created by writers James McAuley and Harold Stewart to hoax the Angry Penguins, a modernist art and literary movement; ironically this fictional person became more famous than the perpetrators of the hoax

Citations +

Matheson, Robert E., Special Report on Surnames in Ireland with Notes as to Numeric Strength, Derivation, Ethnology, and Distribution. Dublin: Alexander Thom & Co., 1894. Print
"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)
Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 41)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) The EMILY 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Emily.htm
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) HIBERNIA 1851. Retrieved http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1851Hibernia.gif
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 10) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html