While many Irish names are quite familiar to us, their original Gaelic forms are often forgotten and mysterious. The original Gaelic form of the name Heeley is O hEalaighthe, which is derived from the word "ealadhach," which means "ingenious." Another Gaelic form of the surname is O hEilidhe, which is derived from the word "eilidhe," which means "claimant."
Early Origins of the Heeley family
The surname Heeley was first found in County
Sligo (Irish: Sligeach), in the province of
Connacht in Northwestern
Ireland, where they held a
family seat from ancient times.
Early History of the Heeley family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Heeley research.
Another 295 words (21 lines of text) covering the years 1309, 1800, 1724, 1794, 1656, 1741, 1579, 1701, 1690 and 1695 are included under the topic Early Heeley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Heeley Spelling Variations
In the days before Gaelic or English gained any significant semblance of standardization, the scribes who created documents simply recorded names as they sounded. Consequently, in the Middle Ages many people were recorded under different spellings each time their name was written down. Research into the Heeley family history revealed numerous
spelling variations of the name, including Haly, Haley, Haily, Hely, Healy, Healey, O'Healey, O'Haly and many more.
Early Notables of the Heeley family (pre 1700)
Notable amongst the family name at this time was Edmond (Edmund) Halley,
FRS (1656-1741), an English astronomer, geophysicist, mathematician, meteorologist, and physicist who is best known for computing the orbit of the eponymous Halley's Comet. He was born in Haggerston, in east London, but his family came from Derbyshire.
Patrick O'Healy, was...
Another 61 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Heeley Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Heeley family to the New World and Oceana
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Heeley Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- Crossley Heeley, aged 18, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1859 aboard the ship "James Jardine"