Kenneday History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland

The ancestors of the Kenneday family lived among the Strathclyde-Briton people in the Scottish/English Borderlands. It is a name for a dour or serious person. Further research revealed that the name is derived from the Gaelic nickname Cinneididh, which translates as grim-headed. It is doubtful that there is any ancient relationship between the Irish Kennedys and the Scottish Clan.

The Irish Kennedy's history dates back to about 900 AD, and there did not appear to be any direct relationship between the two families. However, in the 16th century, a sept of the Scottish Kennedy Clan did develop in Ulster, but they are undoubtedly migrants from Scotland, and had no previous link to the southern Irish Kennedys.

Early Origins of the Kenneday family

The surname Kenneday was first found in Ayrshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Inbhir Àir), formerly a county in the southwestern Strathclyde region of Scotland, that today makes up the Council Areas of South, East, and North Ayrshire, where the earliest record of them dates from 1185, during the reign of King William the Lion, when a Henry Kennedy was reported to have been involved in a rebellion in Galloway but died in battle.

The Kennedys derived from a branch of Celtic Earls of Galloway (not to be confused with Gallway, which is in Ireland). Their power and influence in that region was great. In fact, there is a rhyme handed down through clansmen and bards from the year 1300 which runs as follows: 'Twixt Wigtown and the town of Ayr, Portpatrick and the Cruives of Cree. No man need think to bide there, unless he court with Kennedy.' 1

Early History of the Kenneday family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kenneday research. Another 246 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1170, 1296, 1406, 1437, 1451, 1480, 1508, 1509, 1513, 1515, 1527, 1541, 1558, 1573, 1576, 1615, 1646, 1653, 1668, 1701 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Kenneday History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kenneday Spelling Variations

Prior to the first dictionaries, scribes spelled words according to sound. This, and the fact that Scottish names were repeatedly translated from Gaelic to English and back, contributed to the enormous number of spelling variations in Scottish names. Kenneday has been spelled Kennedy, Kannady, Kenardy, Kennaday, Kenneday, Kenneyday, Kennediem, MacKennedy, MacUalraig (Gaelic) and many more.

Early Notables of the Kenneday family

Notable amongst the family at this time was Gilbert Kennedy, 1st Lord Kennedy (c. 1406-c. 1480); John Kennedy, 2nd Lord Kennedy (1451-1508); David Kennedy, 3rd Lord Kennedy (d. 1513) (created Earl of Cassilis in 1509); David Kennedy, 1st Earl of Cassilis (d. 1513); Gilbert Kennedy, 2nd Earl of Cassilis...
Another 49 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Kenneday Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Kenneday family to Ireland

Some of the Kenneday family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 77 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kenneday migration to the United States +

In such difficult times, the difficulties of raising the money to cross the Atlantic to North America did not seem so large compared to the problems of keeping a family together in Scotland. It was a journey well worth the cost, since it was rewarded with land and freedom the Scots could not find at home. The American War of Independence solidified that freedom, and many of those settlers went on to play important parts in the forging of a great nation. Among them:

Kenneday Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Symon Kenneday, aged 20, who arrived in Virginia in 1634 aboard the ship "Bonaventure" coming via St. Domingo 2
William Kenneday, who landed in Maryland in 1665 2

Kenneday Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Daniell Kenneday, who arrived in Virginia in 1703 2
Arch Kenneday, who landed in Maryland in 1716 2
Mary Kenneday, aged 21, who landed in North Carolina in 1774 2
William Kenneday, aged 25, who arrived in South Carolina in 1774 2
Thomas Kenneday, who settled in Maryland in 1774
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Kenneday Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

J Kenneday, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1855 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Kenneday (post 1700) +

Kavanaugh K. Kenneday, American politician, U.S. Consul in Pará, 1898-1902 3

The Kenneday Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Avise la fin
Motto Translation: Consider the end.

Citations +

Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 6) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html