O'Connor History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
Today's Irish surnames are underpinned by a multitude of rich histories. The name O'Connor originally appeared in Gaelic as Ó Conchobhair, derived from the personal name Conchobhar.
Early Origins of the O'Connor family
The surname O'Connor was first found in Munster, where they held a family seat from very ancient times. The chief O'Connor Kerry was lord of a vast area north of Kerry prior to the Anglo-Norman invasion of 1170, when they were pushed further north.
Early History of the O'Connor family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our O'Connor research. Another 54 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1761, 1763, 1834 and 1852 are included under the topic Early O'Connor History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
O'Connor Spelling Variations
Spelling variations of this family name include: Connor, Conner, Conor, Connors, O'Connor, Connores, Conner, Connar, Connars, O'Connar, O'Conner, Connair, Connairs, Connaire, Connaires, Cawner, Cawners, Caunnor, Cauner, Cauners and many more.
Early Notables of the O'Connor family
Notable amongst the family name at this time was
- Arthur O'Connor, member of the Irish Brigades and general to Napolean
O'Connor World Ranking
In the United States, the name O'Connor is the 530th most popular surname with an estimated 54,714 people with that name. 1 However, in Canada, the name O'Connor is ranked the 506th most popular surname with an estimated 9,630 people with that name. 2 And in Australia, the name O'Connor is the 118th popular surname with an estimated 22,688 people with that name. 3 New Zealand ranks O'Connor as 116th with 3,810 people. 4 The United Kingdom ranks O'Connor as 292nd with 20,852 people. 5
O'Connor migration to the United States +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
O'Connor Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- Arthur O'Connor who arrived in Philadelphia in 1804
O'Connor migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
O'Connor Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
- Bridget O'Connor who was married in Nova Scotia in 1803
- John O'Connor, aged 21, a farmer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1834 aboard the brig "Preston" from Sligo, Ireland
- Jeremiah O'Connor, aged 25, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1837 aboard the barque "Robert Watt" from Cork, Ireland
O'Connor migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
O'Connor Settlers in Australia in the 18th Century
- Miss Elizabeth O'Connor, English convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for life, transported aboard the "Britannia III" on 18th July 1798, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
O'Connor Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- Mr. Michael O'Connor, Welsh convict who was convicted in Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire, Wales for 14 years, transported aboard the "Caledonia" in 19th June 1822, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 7
- Dennis O'Connor, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Buckinghamshire" in 1839 8
- James O'Connor, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Baboo" in 1840 9
- Benjamin O'Connor, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Morley" in 1840 10
- Mary Teresa O'Connor, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Morley" in 1840 10
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
O'Connor migration to New Zealand +
Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:
O'Connor Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
- Michael O'Connor, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Wyvern" in 1856
- John O'Connor, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Wyvern" in 1856
- Mr. John O'Connor, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "John Scott" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 7th March 1858 11
- Mr. Benjamin C. O'Connor, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Mariner" arriving in Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 2nd June 1859 11
- Mr. Thomas O'Connor, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Mersey" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 11th June 1861 11
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
O'Connor migration to West Indies +
The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association.
12O'Connor Settlers in West Indies in the 18th Century
- Charles O'Connor, who arrived in Dominica in 1774
Contemporary Notables of the name O'Connor (post 1700) +
- Sandra Day O'Connor (1930-2023), American lawyer, who became the first woman justice in the U.S. Supreme Court and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom
- Brian O'Connor (1958-2022), American visual artist from Albuquerque, New Mexico, recipient of a joint fellowship from the Western States Arts Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts in 1990
- Michael J. O'Connor (1928-2018), American politician, Member of the South Dakota House of Representatives (1973-1977) and (1981-1982)
- Timothy J. "Tim" O'Connor (1927-2018), American character actor from Chicago, Illinois, known for his work on The United States Steel Hour (1953), Peyton Place (1964) and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979)
- Timothy J. O'Connor Jr. (1936-2018), American politician from Brattleboro, Vermont, Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives (1975-1981)
- William Scott O'Connor (1883-1939), American Olympic sliver medalist for fencing at the 1904 games
- Donald David Dixon Ronald O'Connor (1925-2003), American dancer, singer, and actor, best remembered for his co-starring role as Gene Kelly's friend in Singin' in the Rain (1952)
- Colonel, USMC, RET. Bryan D. O'Connor (b. 1946), NASA Astronaut with over 386 hours in space
- Edwin O'Connor (1918-1968), American radio personality, journalist, and novelist who won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1962
- Carroll O'Connor (1922-2001), American Emmy Award-winning television and stage actor
- ... (Another 23 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Historic Events for the O'Connor family +
Air New Zealand Flight 901
- Mr. Ian John O'Connor (1938-1979), New Zealander passenger, from Timaru, South Island, New Zealand aboard the Air New Zealand Flight 901 for an Antarctic sightseeing flight when it flew into Mount Erebus; he died in the crash 13
North Sea Flood
- Joseph O'Connor, British traveler aboard the ferry "Princess Victoria" killed in the North Sea Flood, a major storm surge in 1953
- Daniel Emmett O'Connor (1957-1988), American U.S. Diplomatic Service from Dorchester, Massachusetts, America, who flew aboard the Pan Am Flight 103 from Frankfurt to Detroit, known as the Lockerbie bombing in 1988 and died 14
- Mr. John O'Connor, American 3rd Class passenger from New York, New York, USA, who sailed aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and died in the sinking 15
- Mr. Thomas Peter O'Connor (d. 1912), aged 39, English Bedroom Steward from Southampton, Hampshire who worked aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 16
- Mr. John O'Connor, aged 25, English Fireman/Stoker from Southampton, Hampshire who worked aboard the RMS Titanic and survived the sinking escaping on life boat 3 16
- Mr. Maurice O'Connor (d. 1912), aged 16, Irish Third Class passenger from Boherbue, Cork who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 16
- Mr. Patrick O'Connor (d. 1912), aged 23, Irish Third Class passenger from Kingwilliamstown, Cork who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 16
Citations +
- "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
- "Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
- "Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
- "Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
- "UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
- Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/Britannia
- Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/caledonia
- State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) BUCKINGHAMSHIRE 1839. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1839Buckinghamshire.htm
- State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) BABOO 1840. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1840Baboo.htm
- State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) MORLEY 1840. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1840Morley.htm
- New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
- Mount Erebus, Memorial, Roll of Remembrance (Retrieved 2018, February 21st). Retrieved from http://www.erebus.co.nz/memorialandawards/rollofremembrance.aspx
- Pan Am Flight 103's victims: A list of those killed 25 years ago | syracuse.com. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2013/12/pan_am_flight_103s_victims_a_list_of_those_killed_25_years_ago.html
- Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/
- Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html