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Looney History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Suggested Reading Citations

Looney History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland
Scotland

The Irish surnames in use today are underpinned by a multitude of rich histories. The name Looney originally appeared in Gaelic as Ó Luinigh.

Early Origins of the Looney family

The surname Looney was first found in County Tyrone (Irish: Tír Eoghain), the ancient territory of the O'Neills, now in the Province of Ulster, central Northern Ireland, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Looney family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Looney research. Another 61 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Looney History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Looney Spelling Variations

The spelling of names in Ireland during the Middle Ages was rarely consistent. This inconsistency was due to the scribes and church officials' attempts to record orally defined names in writing. The common practice of recording names as they sounded resulted in spelling variations such as Lunney, Lunnie, Looney, Loney, Lunny, O'Lunney and others.

Early Notables of the Looney family

Prominent amongst the family at this time was

Lunneys of Munterlooney

Looney Ranking

In the United States, the name Looney is the 1,817^th most popular surname with an estimated 17,409 people with that name. 1

Looney migration to the United States +

In the late 18th century, Irish families began emigrating to North America in the search of a plot of land to call their own. This pattern of emigration grew steadily until the 1840s when the Great Potato Famine of the 1840s cause thousands of Irish to flee the death and disease that accompanied the disaster. Those that made it alive to the shores of the United States and British North America (later to become Canada) were, however, instrumental in the development of those two powerful nations. Many of these Irish immigrants proudly bore the name of Looney:

Looney Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

James C Looney, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1851 2

Looney migration to Australia +

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

Looney Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Looney, British Convict who was convicted in Liverpool, Merseyside, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 25th June 1838, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 3
Mr. William Looney, British Convict who was convicted in Liverpool, Merseyside, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 25th June 1838, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 3
Mary Looney, aged 26, a servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1854 aboard the ship "Confiance" 4
Timothy Looney, aged 37, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Northern Light" 5
Ellen Looney, aged 15, a domestic servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Northern Light" 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Looney 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:

Looney Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Michael Looney, aged 28, a farm labourer, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Oxford" in 1874
Margaret Looney, aged 24, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Oxford" in 1874
Mary Looney, aged 1, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Oxford" in 1874
Thomas Looney, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Oxford" in 1874
Thomas Looney, aged 35, a labourer, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Woodlark" in 1874
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Looney (post 1700) +

John Don Looney (1917-2015), American professional football end who played three seasons for the Philadelphia Eagles (1940) and the Pittsburgh Steelers (1941-1942)
Richard Carl Looney (b. 1934), retired American Bishop of the United Methodist Church
Joe Don Looney (1942-1988), American football running back
Ben Earl Looney (1904-1981), Louisiana artist and author
Brian James Looney (b. 1969), retired Major League Baseball pitcher
Shelley Looney (b. 1972), American ice hockey player
Martin M. Looney (b. 1948), American politician
Andrew J. Looney (b. 1963), award-winning American game designer and computer programmer
Thomas David Looney, Irish Labour Party politician
Séamus Looney (b. 1950), Irish retired sportsperson
... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Looney Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Patriae infelici fidelis
Motto Translation: Faithful to an unhappy country.

Citations +

"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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 19th March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/coromandel
South Australian Register Wednesday 13th September 1854. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Confiance 1854. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/confiance1854.shtml
South Australian Register Monday 9th April 1855. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Norther Light 1855. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/northernlight1855.shtml