Linehan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The Anglo-Norman Conquest of Ireland lead by Strongbow introduced the first non-Gaelic elements into Irish nomenclature. These Anglo-Normans brought some traditions to Ireland that were not readily found within Gaelic system of hereditary surnames. One of the best examples of this is the local surname. Local surnames, such as Linehan, were taken from the name of a place or a geographical feature where the person lived, held land, or was born. These surnames were very common in England, but were almost non-existent within Ireland previous to the conquest. Originally, these place names were prefixed by "de," which means "from" in French. This type of prefix was eventually either made a part of the surname, if the place name began with a vowel, or was eliminated entirely. The Linehan family originally lived in the settlement of Llanaghan, which is in the Welsh county of Brecon.
Early Origins of the Linehan family
The surname Linehan was first found in County Roscommon (Irish: Ros Comáin) located in central Ireland in the province of Connacht, where they were granted lands by Strongbow after his invasion of Ireland in 1172.
Early History of the Linehan family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Linehan research. Another 85 words (6 lines of text) covering the year 1249 is included under the topic Early Linehan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Linehan Spelling Variations
Since church officials and medieval scribes spelt each name as it sounded to them; as a result, a single person could accumulate many different versions of his name within official records. A close examination of the origins of the name Linehan revealed the following spelling variations: Lanigan, Lanahan, Lenaghan, Lanaghan, Linehan and many more.
Early Notables of the Linehan family
More information is included under the topic Early Linehan Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Linehan Ranking
In the United States, the name Linehan is the 11,193rd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1
Linehan migration to the United States +
During the middle of the 19th century, Irish families often experienced extreme poverty and racial discrimination in their own homeland under English rule. Record numbers died of disease and starvation and many others, deciding against such a fate, boarded ships bound for North America. The largest influx of Irish settlers occurred with Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Unfortunately, many of those Irish that arrived in Canada or the United States still experienced economic and racial discrimination. Although often maligned, these Irish people were essential to the rapid development of these countries because they provided the cheap labor required for the many canals, roads, railways, and other projects required for strong national infrastructures. Eventually the Irish went on to make contributions in the less backbreaking and more intellectual arenas of commerce, education, and the arts. Research early immigration and passenger lists revealed many early immigrants bearing the name Linehan:
Linehan Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- Anne Linehan, aged 27, who immigrated to the United States, in 1896
- Abby Linehan, aged 50, who settled in America from Cork, in 1897
Linehan Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
- Bertha Linehan, aged 28, who landed in America from County Waterford, Ireland in 1904
- Cornelius Linehan, aged 32, who immigrated to America from London, in 1904
- Agnes Linehan, aged 33, who landed in America from Dublin, in 1905
- Anna Linehan, aged 27, who settled in America, in 1907
- Con Linehan, aged 22, who settled in America from Boherbee, Ireland, in 1907
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Linehan migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Linehan Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
- John Linehan, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1828
- Abigail Linehan, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1833
- Timothy Linehan, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1834
- Miss. Mary Linehan, aged 1 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Urania" departing from the port of Cork, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle in June 1847 2
- Mr. Patrick Linehan, aged 35 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Asia" departing from the port of Cork, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle in October 1847 2
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Linehan Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century
- Ambrose Linehan, aged 25, who settled in St Marys, Newfoundland, in 1914
- Annie Linehan, aged 25, who immigrated to St. Marys, Newfoundland, in 1915
Contemporary Notables of the name Linehan (post 1700) +
- Kimberly Ann Linehan (b. 1962), American four-time gold medalist swimmer, inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an "Honor Swimmer" in 1997
- John Lewis Linehan (b. 1978), retired American professional basketball player and basketball coach
- Scott Linehan (b. 1963), American NFL football coach and offensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys
- Neil J. Linehan (1895-1967), American politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois (1949-1951)
- Tim Linehan, American screenwriter
- Marsha M. Linehan (b. 1943), American psychologist and author
- Alphonsus James "Alfie" Linehan (1940-2019), Irish cricketer from Dublin
- Rosaleen Linehan (b. 1937), born Rosaleen Philomena McMenamin, an Irish stage and screen actress, recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Irish Theatre Awards in 2008
- John Linehan (b. 1952), Northern Irish comedian
- Graham Linehan (b. 1969), Irish television writer and director
- ... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Historic Events for the Linehan family +
- Mr. Michael Linehan (d. 1912), aged 21, Irish Third Class passenger from Boherbue, Cork who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 3
The Linehan Motto +
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: Patriae infelici fidelis
Motto Translation: Faithful to an unhappy country.
Citations +