Ennys History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Etymology of Ennys

What does the name Ennys mean?

The name Ennys is derived from the Gaelic "hAonghuis," a variant of "hAonghusa," which became O'Hennessy. Thus bearers of this name come from the same stock as the O'Hennesy Septs of Moyfenrath barony in Meath, and Philipstown barony in County Offaly. These Gaelic names mean 'the son of Angus,' and this distinguished Irish sept traces its origin back to King Laeghaire Lorc who reigned in 593 A.D.

Early Origins of the Ennys family

The surname Ennys was first found in County Kildare and the adjoining areas in Meath and Offaly, where bearers of the name have been found since the 16th century, when Irish names were being Anglicized.

"Ennis was formerly O'Hennis, which is Ó hAonghuis in Irish. In both those areas we find Ennis, then written Enos, Ennous (to mention only two of the many variants) very frequently in sixteenth century records." 1

Early History of the Ennys family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ennys research. Another 224 words (16 lines of text) covering the years 1550, 1642, 1646, 1650, 1659 and 1685 are included under the topic Early Ennys History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ennys Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Ennis, Enos, O'Hennis, Hennis, Ennos, Ennes and many more.

Early Notables of the Ennys family

Another 47 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Ennys Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ennys 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. 2

Ennys Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Timothy Ennys, who landed in Barbados in 1635

Sources +

MacLysaght, Edward, Supplement to Irish Families. Baltimore: Genealogical Book Company, 1964. Print.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies