Show ContentsManion History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Manion

What does the name Manion mean?

The original Gaelic form of Manion was Ó Mainnin.

Early Origins of the Manion family

The surname Manion was first found in County Galway (Irish: Gaillimh) part of the province of Connacht, located on the west coast of the Island.

Early History of the Manion family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Manion research. Another 95 words (7 lines of text) covering the year 1172 is included under the topic Early Manion History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Manion Spelling Variations

Because early scribes and church officials often spelled names as they sounded, a person could have many various spellings of his name.Many different spelling variations of the surname Manion were found in the archives researched. These included Mannion, O'Mannin, O'Mannion, Mannyan, Mennon and many more.

Early Notables of the Manion family

More information is included under the topic Early Manion Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Manion Ranking

In the United States, the name Manion is the 7,077th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 1


Manion migration to the United States +

In the 18th and 19th centuries, thousands of Irish families fled an Ireland that was forcibly held through by England through its imperialistic policies. A large portion of these families crossed the Atlantic to the shores of North America. The fate of these families depended on when they immigrated and the political allegiances they showed after they arrived. Settlers that arrived before the American War of Independence may have moved north to Canada at the war's conclusion as United Empire Loyalists. Such Loyalists were granted land along the St. Lawrence River and the Niagara Peninsula. Those that fought for the revolution occasionally gained the land that the fleeing Loyalist vacated. After this period, free land and an agrarian lifestyle were not so easy to come by in the East. So when seemingly innumerable Irish immigrants arrived during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s, free land for all was out of the question. These settlers were instead put to work building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. Whenever they came, Irish settlers made an inestimable contribution to the building of the New World. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name Manion or a variant listed above, including:

Manion Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Dennis Manion, who arrived in America in 1811 2
  • Miss Bridget Manion, aged 20, Irish settler who arrived in New York in 1846 aboard the ship "Stephen Whitney"
  • Mr. Daniel Manion, aged 42, Irish labourer who arrived in New York in 1846 aboard the ship "Stephen Whitney"
  • Mr. Kieran Manion, aged 22, Irish labourer who arrived in New York in 1846 aboard the ship "Stephen Whitney"
  • Edward, James, John and Patrick Manion, who all, who arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Manion Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Ellen Manion, aged 20, who immigrated to America from Kilham, in 1904
  • James Manion, aged 45, who landed in America from Durham, in 1904
  • Agnieszka Manion, aged 27, who settled in America from Biala, Galicia, in 1907
  • Delia Manion, aged 22, who settled in America from Cerofin, Ireland, in 1911
  • James Manion, aged 46, who immigrated to the United States, in 1911
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Manion migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Manion Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Thomas Manion, who arrived in Canada in 1816

Manion migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Manion Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Thomas Manion a ploughman, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Sir George Grey" in 1864

Contemporary Notables of the name Manion (post 1700) +

  • Clyde Jennings Manion (1896-1967), nicknamed "Pete," an American Major League Baseball catcher who played from 1920 to 1934
  • Inspector John J. "Jack" Manion (1877-1959), San Francisco Police officer, leader of the Chinatown Squad
  • Daniel Anthony Manion (b. 1942), American jurist, Federal Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
  • Ed Manion (b. 1952), American saxophone player, best known as a member of Bruce Springsteen with The Seeger Sessions Band Tour
  • James R. S. Manion, American Libertarian politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from California 21st District, 2000 3
  • J. Edward Manion, American Democratic Party politician, Burgess of Carnegie, Pennsylvania; Elected 1941 3
  • J. C. Manion, American politician, U.S. Consular Agent in Johannesburg, 1898 3
  • Howard T. Manion, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for New York State Assembly from Cayuga County, 1938 3
  • George W. Manion, American Democratic Party politician, Postmaster at Alpena, Michigan, 1914-23 ; Candidate in primary for U.S. Representative from Michigan 11th District, 1936 3
  • E. M. Manion, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Kentucky, 1884 3
  • ... (Another 7 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Arrow Air Flight 1285
  • Mr. Edward John Manion (1955-1985), American Captain from Fort Campbell, Kentucky, USA who died in the Arrow Air Flight 1285 crash 4
RMS Lusitania
  • Mr. Martin Manion, Irish 2nd Class passenger residing in Troy, New York, USA, who sailed aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking 5
USS Arizona
  • Mr. Edward Paul Manion, American Seaman Second Class from Illinois, USA working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he died in the sinking 6


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  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)
  3. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 8) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  4. American War Memorials - Flight 1285. (Retrieved 2016, August 24) . Retrieved from http://www.uswarmemorials.org/html/monument_details.php?SiteID=317&MemID=550
  5. Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/
  6. Pearl Harbour: USS Arizona Casualties List Pearl Harbour December 7, 1941. (Retrieved 2018, July 31st). Retrieved from http://pearl-harbor.com/arizona/casualtylist.html


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