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![Show Contents]() O'Kely History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The Irish name O'Kely has a long Gaelic heritage to its credit. The original Gaelic form of the name O'Kely is Ó Ceallaigh or Mac Ceallaigh. These names denote descendants of Ceallach. This personal name may be derived from the word "ceallach," which means "strife." 1 Early Origins of the O'Kely familyThe surname O'Kely was first found in southwest Ireland, south of Dublin where they held a family seat from very ancient times. The Kelly surname is conjecturally descended from King Colla da Crioch, who died in 357 A.D. While most of the family claim Ireland as their heritage, we did find one reference in England: "Kelly, [Devon] is noteworthy as affording one of the few continuing local instances of families seated on the estates whence they take name. The Kellys of Kelly have held this manor from the time of Henry II. at least. " 2 Henry II, King of England reigned from 1154 to 1189; so one may presume there is a relationship between the Irish and the English families, but this is the extent of our research at this time. Early History of the O'Kely familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our O'Kely research. Another 112 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1238, 1253, 1518, 1555, 1597, 1621, 1690, 1695, 1699 and 1701 are included under the topic Early O'Kely History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. O'Kely Spelling VariationsPronunciation, rather than spelling, guided scribes and church officials when recording names during the Middle Ages. This practice often resulted in one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname O'Kely are preserved in these old documents. The various spellings of the name that were found include Kelly, Kellie, O'Kelly, O'Killia and others. Early Notables of the O'Kely familyProminent amongst the family at this time was Daniel MacKelly; Sir Edward Kelley or Kelly, also known as Edward Talbot (1555-1597), Irish occultist and self-declared spirit medium; Charles O’Kelly (1621-1695) was an Irish soldier and writer from Aughrim, County Galway; and James Gilliam, also known as James Kelly, (died 1701), an English pirate active in the Indian Ocean during the 1690s and was...
Another 62 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early O'Kely Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
 O'Kely migration to the United States | + |
The 19th century saw a great wave of Irish families leaving Ireland for the distant shores of North America and Australia. These families often left their homeland hungry, penniless, and destitute due to the policies of England. Those Irish immigrants that survived the long sea passage initially settled on the eastern seaboard of the continent. Some, however, moved north to a then infant Canada as United Empire Loyalists after ironically serving with the English in the American War of Independence. Others that remained in America later joined the westward migration in search of land. The greatest influx of Irish immigrants, though, came to North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Thousands left Ireland at this time for North America, and those who arrived were immediately put to work building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. In fact, the foundations of today's powerful nations of the United States and Canada were to a larger degree built by the Irish. Archival documents indicate that members of the O'Kely family relocated to North American shores quite early:
O'Kely Settlers in United States in the 17th Century- Sisly Okely, who arrived in Virginia in 1666 3
- Margaret Okely, who landed in Maryland in 1678 3
O'Kely Settlers in United States in the 18th Century- John Okely, who arrived in New York, NY in 1742 3
- William Okely, who arrived in New York, NY in 1742 3
- William Okely, who landed in New York, NY in 1754 3
| O'Kely migration to Australia | + |
Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include: O'Kely Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century- Miss Taylah Okely, British convict who was convicted in Agra, India for life, transported aboard the "Buffalo" on 4th May 1833, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 4
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: Turris Fortis Mihi Deus
Motto Translation: God is a strong tower to me.
- MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
- Worth, R.N., A History of Devonshire London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, E.G., 1895. Digital
- 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 3rd November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/buffalo
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O'Kely migration to the United States 
O'Kely migration to Australia 
England
Ireland
