Finen History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland
England

The roots of the Finen surname in Ireland are somewhat unclear; it seems that the name was both native Irish Gaelic, and Norman. The Gaelic name "ó Fionnáin" seems to be derived from Gaelic word "fionn, "which means "fair." This Gaelic name has been Anglicized as Finan and Fanning, both of which are also Norman names that came to Ireland in the 12th century.

Early Origins of the Finen family

The surname Finen was first found in County Mayo (Irish: Maigh Eo) located on the West coast of the Republic of Ireland in the province of Connacht, where they were of the Hy Fiachrach Sept. One notable bearer of the personal name who lived several centuries prior to the introduction of hereditary surnames was St. Finan (Finan of Lindisfarne) who died in 661 AD, and achieved repute for his missionary work in England. He was Bishop of Lindisfarne (651-661) and he converted the kings Sigebert of Essex and Peada of the Middle Angles to Christianity. 1

Early History of the Finen family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Finen research. Another 63 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1659, 1847 and 1901 are included under the topic Early Finen History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Finen Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Finan, O'Finan, Ofinan, Finane and others.

Early Notables of the Finen family

More information is included under the topic Early Finen Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Finen migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Finen Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Bartholomew Finen, aged 31, who landed in Missouri in 1840 2

Citations +

Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
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)