Urley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

The Irish name Urley comes from the Gaelic "O hUirthile." Interestingly, the name has also been rendered Cammane, based on a translation for the Irish word for a hurley (stick).

One of the first records of the family was Saint Comman of Ross-Commain (fl. 550). He was "son of Faelchu and descendant of Fiacha Araidhe, of the family of Rudhraighe, and race of Ir, king of Ulster, A.D. 236. In a short time he constructed a monastery, after the temporary fashion of the country, which was soon filled with zealous monks, and was named from him Ross-Commain (Roscommon). " 1

Early Origins of the Urley family

The surname Urley was first found in Limerick (Irish: Luimneach) located in Southwestern Ireland, in the province of Munster, where they held a family seat as Lords and Chiefs of Knockalong Castle in the parish and barony of Knockalong, Costlea, the ruins of which still exist. Irish history was greatly influenced by the Norman invasion of 1172, and thereafter, the surnames of Irish Gaelic clanns and septs and many of the Norman families became almost indistinguishable. This family name was found later in Rath Hurly, another of their ancient castles which is now in ruins in Kilcullane, in Small barony, Kilcullane, a castle they erected in 1464. The sept is descended from the race of Brenan Ban, on the O'Brien line. Later they built another strong castle in the parish of Kilnelonahan, where Dermod O'Hurley, built his fortress. 2

Early History of the Urley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Urley research. Another 92 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1327, 1377, 1519, 1584, 1700, 1714 and 1992 are included under the topic Early Urley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Urley Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Hurley, Hurlie, O'Hurley, O'Hurlie, Commane and many more.

Early Notables of the Urley family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was

Dermot O'Hurley (1519-1584), Archbishop of Cashel, horribly tortured for his beliefs, one of the most celebrated of Irish Catholic Martyrs, beatified by Pope John Paul II on 27 September 1992
William Hurley was the master carpenter for Edward III (reign 1327-1377), in charge of timber works for all royal buildings including the Tower of London, Windsor Castle, Westminster Palace

Urley migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Urley Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Tusloe Urley, who arrived in Maryland in 1682

Urley migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Urley Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Thomas Urley, who settled in Ontario in 1871

Citations +

Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
O'Hart, John, Irish Pedigrees 5th Edition in 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4)