Ailay History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• Ireland
• Scotland

Etymology of Ailay

Many variations of the name Ailay have evolved since the time of its initial creation. In Gaelic it appeared as Mac Amhalghaidh or Mac Amhlaoibh. The former name denotes a son of Auley, while the later denotes a son of Auliffe or a son of Humphrey. They claim descent through the Heremon line of Irish kings. (O'Hart)

Early Origins of the Ailay family

Early History of the Ailay family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ailay research. Another 109 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1787 and 1841 are included under the topic Early Ailay History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ailay Spelling Variations

The Middle Ages saw a great number of spelling variations for surnames common to the Irish landscape. One reason for these variations is the fact that surnames were not rigidly fixed by this period. The following variations for the name Ailay were encountered in the archives: MacAulay, MacAwley, MacAuley, MacAullay, MacAulley, MacAwlay, MacCaulay, MacCawley, MacGawley, Magawley, Cauley, Caulay, McCamley and many more.

Early Notables of the Ailay family

Another 34 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Ailay Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Ailay family

In the 19th century, thousands of Irish left their English-occupied homeland for North America. Like most new world settlers, the Irish initially settled on the eastern shores of the continent but began to move westward with the promise of owning land. The height of this Irish migration came during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. With apparently nothing to lose, Irish people left on ships bound for North America and Australia. Unfortunately a great many of these passengers lost their lives - the only thing many had left - to disease, starvation, and accidents during the long and dangerous journey. Those who did safely arrive in "the land of opportunities" were often used for the hard labor of building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. The Irish were critical to the quick development of the infrastructure of the United States and Canada. Passenger and immigration lists indicate that members of the Ailay family came to North America quite early: James MacCauley settled in Charles Town in 1772 with his wife; Kenneth MacAulay settled in Philadelphia in 1774; Alexander, George, Henry, James, John, William MacAuley all arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860.