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Origins Available: |
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All Irish surnames have a long, ancient Gaelic history behind them. The original Gaelic form of the name Connaway is Ó Conbhuidhe or Ó Connmhachain. The former of these names likely comes from the Gaelic word "condmach," while the latter probably comes from "cu buidhe." 1
Conway is also an Anglicization of the names Mac Conmheadha or Mac Connmhaigh. One of the first records of the family was Gillabrighde MacConmidhe (fl. 1260) the Irish "historian and poet, a member of a family which for more than three centuries acted as hereditary poets of the Cinel Eoghain, the O'Neills, and their kindred septs. He was born about 1200, and wrote a poem on Cathal Croibhdhearg O'Conor during the lifetime of that king, who died in 1224. Brian O'Neill, chief of the Cinel Eoghain, once gave him twenty horned cows (fiche bo bheannach) for poem, and on another occasion, after the feativities of May day, gave him twenty cows, besides gold and clothing." 2 He was the progenitor of a long line of early Irish poets that were known into the mid 16th century.
The surname Connaway was first found in Donegal (Irish: Dún na nGall), northwest Ireland in the province of Ulster, sometimes referred to as County Tyrconnel, and Connacht. The name is "the anglicized form of several different Irish surnames." 3 The name MacConway (McConway) was typically found in Donegal while the name Conway was found in nearby Sligo in the parish of Easky. 3
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Connaway research. Another 143 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1300, 1360, 1420, 1434, 1493, 1507, 1542, 1564, 1583, 1586, 1594, 1607, 1623, 1628, 1630, 1631, 1655, 1661, 1669, 1679, 1681 and 1683 are included under the topic Early Connaway History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Because early scribes and church officials often spelled names as they sounded, a person could have many various spellings of his name.Many different spelling variations of the surname Connaway were found in the archives researched. These included Conway, Conboy, Convey, O'Conway, McConway and others.
Prominent amongst the family at this time was Edward Conway, 1st Viscount Conway PC (1564-1631), an English soldier and statesman, Secretary of State in 1623, Lord President of the Council (1628-1631); his son, Edward Conway, 2nd Viscount Conway PC (1594-1655), an English politician, military commander and peer; and his son, Edward Conway, 1st Earl of Conway PC...
Another 56 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Connaway Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
A massive wave of Irish immigrants hit North America during the 19th century. Although many early Irish immigrants made a carefully planned decision to leave left Ireland for the promise of free land, by the 1840s immigrants were fleeing a famine stricken land in desperation. The condition of Ireland during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s can be attributed to a rapidly expanding population and English imperial policies. Those Irish families that arrived in North America were essential to its rapid social, industrial, and economic development. Passenger and immigration lists have revealed a number of early Irish immigrants bearing the name Connaway:
Some of the first settlers of this family name were: