Show ContentsHefley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name is derived from the Irish Gaelic personal name "ó hEamhthaigh." 1 The origins of this ancient personal name are obscure. It is possible that there is a connection to the word "eamh" which denotes a "groaning or exclamation of disgust."

Early Origins of the Hefley family

The surname Hefley was first found in the Athlone region, County Westmeath (Irish: An Iarmhí) in the Irish Midlands, province of Leinster. Later some records of the family were found in Waterford and Cork. 1

Early recorded instances of the name are rare, but there was a bearer recorded as a husbandman of Thisteinagh, in Couty Westmeath in 1601.

Early History of the Hefley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hefley research. The years 1659, 1775 and 1835 are included under the topic Early Hefley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hefley Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Heaphy, O'Heaphy, Heaphey, Heavey, O'Heavy, Heafy, O'Heafey, Heflin and many more.

Early Notables of the Hefley family

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

Hefley Ranking

In the United States, the name Hefley is the 11,060th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2


United States Hefley migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Hefley Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Joshans Carol Hefley, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1737 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Hefley (post 1700) +

  • Joel M. Hefley (b. 1935), American Republican politician, Member of Colorado State House of Representatives, 1977-78; Member of Colorado State Senate, 1979-86; U.S. Representative from Colorado 5th District, 1987-2007 4
  • Herald Hefley, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Iowa State House of Representatives from Dallas County, 1950 4
  • H. R. Hefley, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Iowa State Senate 17th District, 1948 4


  1. MacLysaght, Edward, More Irish Families. Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-0126-0)
  2. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  3. 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)
  4. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 12) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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