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Show ContentsSweeney History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
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Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

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Irish names tend to vary widely in their spelling and overall form. The original Gaelic form of the name Sweeney is Mac Suibhne, which is derived from the word "suibhne," which means "pleasant."

Early Origins of the Sweeney family

The surname Sweeney was first found in County Donegal (Irish: Dún na nGall), northwest Ireland in the province of Ulster, sometimes referred to as County Tyrconnel. The name is derived from Suibhne O'Neill, who was a chieftain in Argyll, Scotland. His descendants migrated to Ireland as gallowglasses (mercenaries) prior to 1267. The three great septs of this name finally established themselves in Tirconnell in 14th century; they were known as MacSweeney Fanad, MacSweeney Banagh, and MacSweeney na dTuath, who were commonly referred to as 'MacSweeney of the Battleaxes.' They later became attached to the MacCarthys in the south and acquired their own territories and castles in Muskerry in County Cork.

Early History of the Sweeney family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Sweeney research. Another 69 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1299 and 1310 are included under the topic Early Sweeney History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Sweeney 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 Sweeney were encountered in the archives: MacSweeney, MacSweeny, MacSwine, MacSwiney, MacSwyne, MacSwyny, MacWhinney, MacWhinny, MacWhinnie, MacSwiny, McSweeney, Swiney, Swinney and many more.

Early Notables of the Sweeney family

Prominent amongst the family at this time was John MacSween, a 13th-14th century nobleman who lost his lands in Scotland after the defeat of the forces and death of Alexander Og MacDonald, Lord of Islay in 1299. In...
Another 37 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Sweeney Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Sweeney World Ranking

In the United States, the name Sweeney is the 650th most popular surname with an estimated 44,766 people with that name. [1] However, in Newfoundland, Canada, the name Sweeney is ranked the 555th most popular surname with an estimated 82 people with that name. [2] And in Australia, the name Sweeney is the 645th popular surname with an estimated 6,055 people with that name. [3] The United Kingdom ranks Sweeney as 480th with 13,422 people. [4]

United States Sweeney 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 Sweeney family came to North America quite early:

Sweeney Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Alexander Sweeney, who settled in Boston in 1768
Sweeney Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Adam Sweeney, who settled in New York, NY in 1805
  • Daniel Sweeney, who settled in Philadelphia in 1808
  • Charles Sweeney, who arrived in America in 1812 [5]
  • P Sweeney, who landed in New York, NY in 1812 [5]
  • Terrence Sweeney, who arrived in New London, Connecticut in 1816 [5]
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Canada Sweeney migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Sweeney Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Robert Sweeney, who arrived in Canada in 1823
  • Cornelius Sweeney, who arrived in Canada in 1823
  • Denis Sweeney, who landed in Canada in 1823
  • Kitty Sweeney, who arrived in Canada in 1823
  • Margaret Sweeney, who landed in Canada in 1823
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Australia Sweeney migration to Australia +

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

Sweeney Settlers in Australia in the 18th Century
  • Mr. Edmond Sweeney, (b. 1762), aged 31, Irish convict who was convicted in Monaghan, County Monaghan, Ireland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Boddingtons" on 15th February 1793, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [6]
Sweeney Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Martin Sweeney, Irish convict who was convicted in Dublin, Ireland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Atlas" on 29th November 1801, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [7]
  • Mr. James Sweeney, English convict who was convicted in Chatham, Kent, England for 14 years , transported aboard the "Duke of Portland" in January 1807, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [8]
  • Miss Clara Sweeney, English convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for life for larceny, transported aboard the "Broxbournebury" in January 1814, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, she died in 1814 aboard the ship [9]
  • Mr. Michael Sweeney, (Swiney, John), (b. 1799), aged 20, Irish labourer from Donegal who was convicted in Dumfries, Scotland for 14 years for house breaking, transported aboard the "Canada" on 23rd April 1819, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [10]
  • Mr.Edward Sweeney, (b. 1794), aged 25, Irish servant who was convicted in Dublin, Ireland for 7 years for passing forged notes, transported aboard the "Bencoolen" on 24th April 1819, arriving in New South Wales, Australia before being transferred to Tasmania via the "Admiral Cockburn", he died in 1830 when he was executed for the murder of his wife [11]
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

New Zealand Sweeney 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:

Sweeney Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Mr. George Sweeney, Australian settler travelling from Hobart, Tasmania, Australia aboard the ship "Bee" arriving in New Zealand in 1831 [12]
  • Miss Bridget Sweeney, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Victory " arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 17th October 1863 [13]
  • Mr. John Sweeney, British labourer travelling from London aboard the ship "Victory " arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 17th October 1863 [13]
  • M.A. Sweeney, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Victory " arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 17th October 1863 [13]
  • Mr. John Henry Sweeney, South African settler travelling from Cape Town aboard the ship "Eveline" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 22nd January 1865 [12]
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Sweeney (post 1700) +

  • Sydney Sweeney (b. 1997), American two-time Emmy Award nominated actress, known for her roles in the HBO drama series Euphoria (2019-present) and the first season of the anthology series The White Lotus (2021)
  • Matthew Sweeney (1948-2024), American special effects artist
  • James Joseph "Jim" Sweeney (1962-2022), American NFL center and guard for 16 seasons in the National Football League (NFL)
  • Mark Sweeney (1959-2022), American politician and businessman who served as a member of the Montana Senate for the 39th district from January 4, 2021, until his death
  • John Joseph Sweeney (1934-2021), American labor leader, President of the AFL-CIO from 1995 to 2009, recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom
  • Patrick Anthony Sweeney (1939-2020), American politician, Democratic member of the Ohio Senate from 1997 to 1998
  • Daniel Bernard "D. B." Sweeney (b. 1961), American actor
  • Alison Sweeney (b. 1976), American television actress
  • Bob Sweeney (b. 1964), American professional ice hockey player
  • John E Sweeney (b. 1955), American Republican politician, representative from New York (1999-) [14]
  • ... (Another 12 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
RMS Lusitania
  • Mr. Jeremiah Sweeney, Irish Fireman from Castlebar, Mayo, Ireland, who worked aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and died in the sinking [15]
  • Mr. John Martin Sweeney, American 2nd Class passenger from Watertown, Massachusetts, USA, who sailed aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking [16]

Suggested Readings for the name Sweeney +

  • The Descendants of Redmond Peter Fahey And Cecilia Haverty and John Sweeney and Mary Dineen, 1810-1984 by Verne Raymond Spear.
  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. The order of Common Surnames in 1955 in Newfoundland retrieved on 20th October 2021 (retrieved from Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland by E.R. Seary corrected edition ISBN 0-7735-1782-0)
  3. "Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
  4. "UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
  5. 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)
  6. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 25th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/boddingtons
  7. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/atlas
  8. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 28th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/duke-of-portland
  9. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 3rd November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/broxbournebury
  10. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 9th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/canada
  11. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 5th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/bencoolen
  12. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  13. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  14. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  15. Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 7) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/
  16. Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/
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