Irish names tend to vary widely in their spelling and overall form. The original Gaelic form of the name Gavanagh is Caomhanach, an adjective denoting association with St. Caomhan. The first Kavanagh, Donal, the son of Dermot MacMurrough, was fostered by a successor of this saint.
Early Origins of the Gavanagh family
The surname Gavanagh was first found in
County Carlow (Irish: Cheatharlach) a small landlocked area located in the province of
Leinster in the South East of
Ireland, where they held a
family seat from very ancient times. The Kavanaghs (Cavanaghs) were descended from the MacMorough stem and were Lords of
Leinster. Donoch McMorough was the King of
Leinster, son of Dermod and it was from Donoch from which the Cavanaghs sprang. They were descended directly from the
Heremon Line of Irish Kings. Donell, son of Dermot MacMurrough acquired the name Caomhanach, or Cavanagh. His sister Eva married
Strongbow, Earl of Pembroke, the leader of the English invasion of
Ireland.
[1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Lowe, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Early History of the Gavanagh family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gavanagh research.
Another 193 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1889, 1667 and 1739 are included under the topic Early Gavanagh History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Gavanagh Spelling Variations
Those scribes in
Ireland during the Middle Ages recorded names as they sounded. Consequently, in this era many people were recorded under different spellings each time their name was written down. Research on the Gavanagh family name revealed numerous
spelling variations, including Cavanagh, Kavanagh, Kavanah, Cavanaugh, Keevan, Cavanaw, Kavanaw, Cavenaugh, Cavanough, Cavaneagh, Cavana, Cavena, Cavinaugh, Kavina, Kavena, Kavanaugh, Cavanach, Kavanach, Cabenagh, O'Cavanagh, O'Kavanagh, Keaveney, Geaveney, M'Cavanna and many more.
Early Notables of the Gavanagh family (pre 1700)
Prominent amongst the family at this time was Christian Davies (1667-1739), born Christian Cavanagh in
Dublin, also known as Kit Cavanagh and Mother Ross was a...
Another 26 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gavanagh Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Gavanagh family to the New World and Oceana
During the 19th century thousands of impoverished
Irish families made the long journey to British North America and the United States. These people were leaving a land that had become beset with poverty, lack of opportunity, and hunger. In North America, they hoped to find land, work, and political and religious freedoms. Although the majority of the immigrants that survived the long sea passage did make these discoveries, it was not without much perseverance and hard work: by the mid-19th century land suitable for agriculture was short supply, especially in British North America, in the east; the work available was generally low paying and physically taxing construction or factory work; and the English stereotypes concerning the Irish, although less frequent and vehement, were, nevertheless, present in the land of freedom, liberty, and equality for all men. The largest influx of Irish settlers occurred with
Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s. Research into passenger and immigration lists has brought forth evidence of the early members of the Gavanagh family in North America: Charles, Dudley, James, John, Joseph, Michael, Nicholas, Peter, Robert, Thomas and William Cavanagh, who all arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania between 1813 and 1880.