Show ContentsKary History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Irish name Kary originally appeared in Gaelic as Ó Ciardha. 1 However, "Carey" and its spelling variations have also been used as the Anglicized forms of six other Irish patronymics: Ó Ceinin, Ó Ciarain, Mac Giolla Ceire, Ó Carra, Mac Giolla Chathair, and the nearly-extinct MacFhiachra.

Early Origins of the Kary family

The surname Kary was first found in the county of Kilkenny (Irish: Cill Chainnigh), the former Kingdom of Osraige (Ossory), located in Southeastern Ireland in the province of Leinster. Today Cary is a barony in County Antrim, Northern Ireland.

Early History of the Kary family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kary research. Another 174 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1300, 1620, 1761, 1784 and 1834 are included under the topic Early Kary History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kary Spelling Variations

Pronunciation, rather than spelling, guided scribes and church officials when recording names during the Middle Ages. This practice often resulted in one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname Kary are preserved in these old documents. The various spellings of the name that were found include Carrie, Carry, Carre, Carie, Carrey, MacCarry, MacHarry, MacHarris, O'Carey, Cary, M'Carrie, Kearey, Kearrie, Keerie, Keery, Keerey, M'Harrie, M'Harry, M'Hary, M'Harie and many more.

Early Notables of the Kary family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Patrick Carrie, notable Irish patriot. Also, three famous brothers of the Carey name, John Carey, the inventor of the distress rocket for ships, went to London and taught school, becoming a most prolific writer, writing over 50 classics, including short stories and poems. The next brother, William, a painter and engraver, stayed in Dublin...
Another 63 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Kary Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Kary migration to the United States +

A massive amount of Ireland's native population left the island in the 19th century for North America and Australia in hopes of finding more opportunities and an escape from discrimination and oppression. A great portion of these migrants arrived on the eastern shores of the North American continent. Although they were generally poor and destitute, and, therefore, again discriminated against, these Irish people were heartily welcomed for the hard labor involved in the construction of railroads, canals, roadways, and buildings. Many others were put to work in the newly established factories or agricultural projects that were so essential to the development of what would become two of the wealthiest nations in the world. The Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s initiated the largest wave of Iris immigration. Early North American immigration and passenger lists have revealed a number of people bearing the name Kary or a variant listed above:

Kary Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • William V Kary, who landed in Louisiana in 1813 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Kary (post 1700) +

  • Kary Lyndsey Osmond (b. 1979), Canadian-based celebrity cook
  • Kary Banks Mullis (b. 1944), Nobel Prize winning American biochemist, author, and lecturer


  1. MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
  2. 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)


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