Show ContentsDonnahoo History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Donnahoo

What does the name Donnahoo mean?

The many Irish surnames in use today have long rich histories behind them. The name Donnahoo originally appeared in Gaelic as Ó Donnchadha, which means son of Donnchadh or son of Donagh. 1

Early Origins of the Donnahoo family

The surname Donnahoo was first found in County Kerry (Irish:Ciarraí) part of the former County Desmond (14th-17th centuries), located in Southwestern Ireland, in Munster province, where they held a family seat from very ancient times.

Early History of the Donnahoo family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Donnahoo research. Another 76 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1640, 1811, 1812 and 1893 are included under the topic Early Donnahoo History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Donnahoo Spelling Variations

Many variations of the name Donnahoo were found in archives from the Middle Ages. The spelling and language in which the people's names were recorded was often up to the individual scribe. Variations of the name Donnahoo found include Donoghue, Donaghoe, Donaho, Donahoe, Donough, Donahue, Donahow, Doneghoe, Donehue, Donighue, Donohoe,Donahugh, Donohough, Donohow, Donohue, Donaughue, O'Donoghue, Dunphy, Donaghie, Donaghy and many more.

Early Notables of the Donnahoo family

Another 28 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Donnahoo Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Donnahoo family

In the 18th and 19th centuries hundreds of thousands of Irish people immigrated to North American shores. The early settlers were enticed by the promise of their own land, but they were moderately well off in Ireland when they decided to emigrate. Therefore, they were merely carrying out a long and carefully thought out decision. The 1840s saw the emergence of a very different trend: thousands of extremely desperate people crammed into passenger boats hoping to find any type of opportunity. The Irish of this decade had seen their homeland severely stricken by crop failures which resulted in widespread disease and starvation. At whatever time the Irish immigrants came to North America, they were instrumental in the rapid development of the emerging nations of the United States and what would become known as Canada. An exhaustive search of passenger and immigration lists has revealed many persons bearing the name Donnahoo, or one of its variants: Bridget Donaghue who settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1850; along with Catherine, Charles, Dennis, Ellen, John, Mary, Michael, Patrick, Thomas, and many many more who settled in Philadelphia, and New York State..



  1. MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)


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