Cahil History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

The original Gaelic form of Cahil was Mac Cathail or Ó Cathail, while is derived from the personal name Cathal, which is generally Anglicized as Charles. Cahil is derived from the Old Irish "catu-ualos" which means "valor or powerful in battle". 1

Early Origins of the Cahil family

The surname Cahil was first found in County Kerry and Tipperary as there are at least two distinct septs of the name. The first sept from County Kerry descend from the Heremon line of kings and were known as the Cahills of Connaught. The second sept claim descent from the Ir line of kings and were located at Corkashinny, or the parish of Templemore, Tipperary. This line further branched to the eponymous Ballycahill, Tipperary. Both branches descended from O'Connors, the Kings of Connacht, specifically "Cathal," also known as Conor na Luinge Luaithe, when anglicized means "Conor, the Swifter-Sailing Ship" 2 which may elude to the seafaring coat of arms used by the family.

Early History of the Cahil family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cahil research. Another 138 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1654, 1796 and 1864 are included under the topic Early Cahil History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cahil Spelling Variations

Individual scribes in the Ireland during the Middle Ages would often record a person's name various ways. How the name was recorded depended on what that particular scribe believed the proper spelling for the name pronounced to him was. Spelling variations revealed in the search for the origin of the Cahil family name include Cahill, O'Cahill, Kahill, Cawhill, Cahille, Cahil, Cahaly, Cahell, Cahel, Caughell, Kahil, Kahel, Caill, Cail and many more.

Early Notables of the Cahil family

Notable among the family name at this time was

Flan O'Cahill, martyred in 938
Daniel O'Cahill, brother of Bogh O'Cahill, chief of the Clan, forfeited under the Cromwellian settlement, his castle and the lands of Ballycahill having to move to Ballyglass, County Mayo in 1654

Cahil migration to the United States +

Irish families began to immigrate to British North America and the United States in the 18th century, but the greatest influx of Irish immigrants came during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. The earlier settlers came to North America after a great deal of consideration and by paying relatively high fees for their passage. These settlers were primarily drawn by the promise of land. Those later settlers that came during the 1840's were trying to escape the conditions of poverty, starvation, disease, and death that had stricken Ireland. Due to the enormity of their numbers and the late date of their arrival, these immigrants primarily became hired laborers instead of homesteading settlers like their predecessors. An exhaustive search of immigration and passenger lists has revealed many Irish immigrants North America bearing the name Cahil:

Cahil Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Patrick Cahil, aged 22, who arrived in Missouri in 1839 3
Laurence Cahil, who landed in Mobile, Ala in 1861 3

Cahil migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Cahil Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Elizabeth Cahil of Caplin Cove was married in St. John's, Newfoundland in 1815 4

The Cahil 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: In Domino confido
Motto Translation: I trust in the Lord.

Citations +

MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
O'Hart, John, Irish Pedigrees 5th Edition in 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4)
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Seary E.R., Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland, Montreal: McGill's-Queen's Universtity Press 1998 ISBN 0-7735-1782-0