Show ContentsMullowny History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Before Irish names were translated into English, Mullowny had a Gaelic form of Ó Maoldhomhnaigh, which means descendant of a servant of the Church. 1

Early Origins of the Mullowny family

The surname Mullowny was first found in County Clare (Irish: An Clár) located on the west coast of Ireland in the province of Munster, where O'Moloney, "were chiefs of Cuiltenan, now the parish of Kiltonanlea, in the barony of Tulla." 2

Early History of the Mullowny family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Mullowny research. Another 131 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1601, 1690, 1709, 1726, 1865, 1900, 1925, 1937, 1949 and 1976 are included under the topic Early Mullowny History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mullowny 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 Mullowny are preserved in the archival documents of the period. The various spellings of the name that were found include Molony, Maloney, O'Maloney, O'Molony, MacLoughney and many more.

Early Notables of the Mullowny family

Prominent amongst the family at this time was Father Donough O'Molony who was tortured to death in 1601. John Mullowney (c. 1690-1726) was born in Derrew, near Ballyheane, County Mayo who began his career as a horse thief and was sentenced to death in Castlebar in his youth. The Grand Jury made a deal with him in which...
Another 57 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Mullowny Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Canada Mullowny migration to Canada +

Under the rule of England, land ownership in Ireland changed dramatically, and many native Irish families found themselves renting out land to farm from absentee owners. This was one of the prime reasons that immigration to North America began in the late 18th century: Irish farmers dreamed of owning their own parcel of land to work for themselves. At this point, the immigrants were at least of modest means for the passage across the Atlantic was often quite dear. In the 1840s the Great Potato Famine created an exodus of people of quite different means. These people were most often destitute: they either sold anything they had to gain a passage or they were sponsored by philanthropic societies. Many of these immigrants were sick from disease and starvation: as a result many did not survive the long transatlantic journey. Although those settlers that did survive were often despised and discriminated against by people already established in these nations, they were critical to rapid development of the powerful industrial nations of the United States and the country that would later become known as Canada. An examination of immigration and passenger lists shows many persons bearing the name of Mullowny or one of its variants:

Mullowny Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Anthony Mullowny, aged 22 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 he died on board 3

Australia Mullowny migration to Australia +

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

Mullowny Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. James Mullowny, British convict who was convicted in Corfu for 7 years, transported aboard the "Emma Eugenia" on 2nd November 1837, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 4


  1. MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)
  2. O'Hart, John, Irish Pedigrees 5th Edition in 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4)
  3. 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. 90)
  4. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 29th March 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/emma-eugenia


Houseofnames.com on Facebook