Show ContentsCañadas History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Cañadas

What does the name Cañadas mean?

The spelling and overall form of Irish names tend to vary widely over time. The original Gaelic form of the name Cañadas is O'Cinneide , which is derived from the words "ceann," which means "head," and "éidigh," which means "helmet" 1 or O'Cinnidha, which means "a nation" or "kind." (O'Hart)

Early Origins of the Cañadas family

The surname Cañadas was first found in County Tipperary (Irish: Thiobraid Árann), established in the 13th century in South-central Ireland, in the province of Munster. This distinguished Irish family were descended from Kennedy, nephew of King Brian Boru, Ireland's great Warrior King who fell in the battle of Clontarf in the year 1014. (O'Hart)

The name has a long and illustrious history that begins in early times: Flan O'Kennedy, Abbot of Tim, a learned poet who died in 1110; two O'Kennedy of Ormond chiefs who were slain in 1117; Giolla-Kevin O'Kennedy who died on a pilgrimage at Killaloe in 1159; O'Kennedy, Abbot of Innisfallen who died in 1198; Donal O'Kennedy, Bishop of Killaloe who died in 1212; and many more. (O'Hart)

Early History of the Cañadas family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cañadas research. Another 67 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1615 and 1685 are included under the topic Early Cañadas History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cañadas Spelling Variations

Irish names recorded during the Middle Ages are characterized by many spelling variations. This preponderance of variations for common names can be explained by the fact that the scribes and church officials that kept records during that period individually decided how to capture one's name. These recorders primarily based their decisions on how the name was pronounced or what it meant. Research into the name Cañadas revealed many variations, including Kennedy, Minagh, Kennady, O'Kennedy and others.

Early Notables of the Cañadas family

Mathew Kennedy, who was forced to leave Ireland for France after the Fall of Limerick; Sir Robert Kennedy, 1st Baronet, an official of the Irish Court of Exchequer; Sir Richard Kennedy, 2nd...
Another 31 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Cañadas Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Cañadas family

Suffering from poverty and racial discrimination, thousands of Irish families left the island in the 19th century for North America aboard cramped passenger ships. The early migrants became settlers of small tracts of land, and those that came later were often employed in the new cities or transitional work camps. The largest influx of Irish settlers occurred with Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s. Although the immigrants from this period were often maligned when they arrived in the United States, they provided the cheap labor that was necessary for the development of that country as an industrial power. Early immigration and passenger lists have revealed many immigrants bearing the name Cañadas: Teage O'Kenedy, who arrived in Virginia in 1666; Ffergos Kenedey, a Scotch-Irish settler in New England in 1718; David Kennedy, who arrived in Boston in 1737.



  1. MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)


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