MacBreint Surname, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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The Irish name MacBreint has evolved from the Gaelic Mac Braoin or O Braoin.

MacBreint Early Origins

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The surname MacBreint was first found in County Kilkenny (Irish: Cill Chainnigh), the former Kingdom of Osraige (Ossory), located in Southeastern Ireland in the province of Leinster, where the family is descended through the Heremon line and claim to be direct descendants of King Niall of the Nine Hostages. They were known as the Lords of Brawney and were an Ossory sept (Clann) seated near Knocktopher, Kilkenny, until they had to forfeit their lands by the Anglo Norman invasion of Strongbow, Earl of Pembroke in 1172. They were subsequently dispersed throughout Ireland.

MacBreint 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 MacBreint family name revealed numerous spelling variations, including Breen, Breene, Brean, Breane, Bruen, Brawney, O'Breen, O'Braoin and many more.

MacBreint Early History

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our MacBreint research. Another 369 words (26 lines of text) covering the years 1303, 1324, 1560 and 1625 are included under the topic Early MacBreint History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

MacBreint Early Notables (pre 1700)

Another 48 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early MacBreint Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

The Great Migration

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 MacBreint or a variant listed above: Francis Breen, who was on record in Delaware in 1812; John Breene who settled in New York in 1803; Alice Breen, who sailed from Londonderry to Philadelphia in 1847.

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: Comnac an Ceane
Motto Translation: Fight for Right

MacBreint Family Crest Products

Citations

^ O'Hart, John, Irish Pedigrees 5th Edition in 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4)

Other References

Matthews, John. Matthews' American Armoury and Blue Book. London: John Matthews, 1911. Print.
Shaw, William A. Knights of England A Complete Record from the Earliest Time to the Present Day of the Knights of all the Orders of Chivalry in England, Scotland, Ireland and Knights Bachelors 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing. Print. (ISBN 080630443X).
Magnusson, Magnus. Chambers Biographical Dictionary 5th edition. Edinburgh: W & R Chambers, 1990. Print.
Read, Charles Anderson. The Cabinet of Irish Literature Selections from the Works of the Chief Poets, Orators and Prose Writers of Ireland 4 Volumes. London: Blackie and Son, 1884. Print.
Woodham-Smith, Cecil. The Great Hunger Ireland 1845-1849. New York: Old Town Books, 1962. Print. (ISBN 0-88029-385-3).
Tepper, Michael Ed & Elizabeth P. Bentley Transcriber. Passenger Arrivals at the Port of Philadelphia 1800-1819. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1986. Print.
Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at Galveston Texas 1896-1951. National Archives Washington DC. Print.
Zieber, Eugene. Heraldry in America. Philadelphia: Genealogical Publishing Co. Print.
Somerset Fry, Peter and Fiona Somerset Fry. A History of Ireland. New York: Barnes and Noble, 1993. Print. (ISBN 1-56619-215-3).
Fitzgerald, Thomas W. Ireland and Her People A Library of Irish Biography 5 Volumes. Chicago: Fitzgerald. Print.
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The MacBreint Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The MacBreint Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname.

This page was last modified on 6 June 2014 at 11:06.