Alary History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France
Ireland

The name Alary originally appeared in Gaelic as Ó Cleirigh, from the word "cleireach," which means "clerk" or "cleric." 1 The name denotes a descendant of Cleireach, who was born around 820 AD, and descended from Guaire the Hospitable, the famous king of Connacht.

Early Origins of the Alary family

The surname Alary was first found in County Galway. A descendent of Guaire, Cleireach, the namesake of the O'Clerys, was born around 820 AD, about two hundred years before hereditary surnames came into general use. 2 However, the name O'Clery first appeared around 950 AD, making it one of the earliest recorded hereditary surnames. The O'Clerys were the dominant sept in what is now the diocese of Kilmacduagh in the county of Galway, but declined in power until they were forced out of their original territory by the mid-13th century. The most important branch of the family settled in Counties Derry and Donegal and became prominent historians and poets. The branch that settled in County Cavan has seemingly all but vanished. However, the English surname Clarke has been widely substituted for O'Clery there, following the Plantation of Ulster, and many Irish Clarkes may actually be O'Clerys, rather than descendants of English settlers. Another branch is still fairly common in the counties of Kilkenny, Waterford, and Tipperary. The name is presently found mostly in Munster and Dublin.

Early History of the Alary family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Alary research. Another 96 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1450, 1507, 1636, 1781 and 1860 are included under the topic Early Alary History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Alary Spelling Variations

Lacking standardized spellings, scribes and church officials recorded people's name according to how they sounded. This practice often led to the misleading result of one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname Alary are preserved in the archival documents of the period. The various spellings of the name that were found include Clery, Cleary, Claree, Clarey, Cleare, Clearey, Clerey, O'Cleary, O'Clery, Macchlery, Clerkin, Clark and many more.

Early Notables of the Alary family

Another 42 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Alary Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Alary Ranking

In France, the name Alary is the 3,161^st most popular surname with an estimated 2,000 - 2,500 people with that name. 3

Alary migration to Canada +

A great wave of Irish migration occurred during the 19th century as a direct result of English colonial rule and tight-fisted absentee landlords. Many of these Irish immigrants boarded passenger ships bound for North America. Those who migrated early enough were given land in either British North America or the United States; those who came in the late 19th century were typically employed in industrial centers as laborers. At whatever age they undertook the dangerous passage to North America, those Irish immigrants were essential to the speedy development of the two infant nations to which they arrived, whether they broke and settled land, helped build canals, bridges, and railroads, or produced products for consumer consumption. An examination of immigration and passenger lists has uncovered a large number of immigrants bearing the name Alary or one of its variants:

Antoine Alary, son of Jean-Baptiste and Marie-Josephte, who married Thérèse Defoy, daughter of Charles and Marie-Angélique, in Saint-Augustin-de-Portneuf, Quebec on 24th September 1753 4
Charles Alary, son of Pierre and Marie-Josephte, who married Marie-Josephte Gendron, daughter of René and Marie-Nicole, in Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pérade, Quebec on 12th August 1754 4
Jean-Baptiste Alary, son of René and Louise, who married Charlotte Favreau, daughter of Nicolas and Marie-Barbe, in Boucherville, Quebec on 19th February 1727 4
Joseph Alary, son of René and Louise, who married Geneviève Desgagnés, daughter of Jacques and Geneviève, in Quebec on 22nd October 1724 4
Joseph Alary, son of Jean-Baptiste and Marie-Louise, who married Geneviève Lacombe, daughter of Jean-Baptiste and Marguerite, in Yamachine, Quebec on 16th February 1756 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Alary Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Mrs. Margaret Alary, aged 70 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Larch" departing 11th July 1847 from Sligo, Ireland; the ship arrived on 20th August 1847 but she died on board 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Alary (post 1700) +

Giulio Alary (1814-1891), Italian composer
Olivier Alary (b. 1975), French musician from Toulouse, France who is now based in Montreal, Canada

Citations +

MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
Internoscia, Arthur E., and Claire Chevrier. Dictionnaire National des Canadiens Français 1608-1760. Vol. 1, Institut Drouin, 1958.
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. 64)