| ![Show Contents]() McNearney History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
Ireland
Etymology of McNearneyWhat does the name McNearney mean? The many Irish surnames in use today have long rich histories behind them. The name McNearney originally appeared in Gaelic as Mac an Airchinnigh, which means son of the erenagh. The word erenagh refers to a steward of church lands. This was originally an ecclesiastical task, but was later performed by laymen, becoming a hereditary trade. 1 Early Origins of the McNearney familyThe surname McNearney was first found in County Clare (Irish: An Clár) located on the west coast of Ireland in the province of Munster, where the MacInerny variant prevails. The McEneany variant is "the name of two septs. That Co. Roscommon is almost extinct; that of Oriel is numerous under many variants. A study of this name which appeared in the Clogher Record (1960) presents evidence (which I have verified elsewhere) to prove that its Irish form is not the generally accepted Mac Conaonaigh but Mac an Dhéaghanaigh, earlier Mac an Déaganaigh." 1 "MacAneany, also written MacEneany and sometimes MacNeany, was changed to Bird by some families in County Monaghan, Louth and Meath." 2 Early History of the McNearney familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our McNearney research. Another 214 words (15 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1365, 1393, 1398 and 1659 are included under the topic Early McNearney History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. McNearney Spelling VariationsScribes recorded people's names as they saw fit. As a result, surnames often had many spelling variations. For McNearney some of these variations included: MacInerny, MacInerney, Nerney, Kinnerk, Nerheny, Nertney, Nirney, McNertney, MacNertney, MacNerney and many more. Early Notables of the McNearney familyMore information is included under the topic Early McNearney Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the McNearney familyIn the 18th and 19th centuries hundreds of thousands of Irish people immigrated to North American shores. The early settlers were enticed by the promise of their own land, but they were moderately well off in Ireland when they decided to emigrate. Therefore, they were merely carrying out a long and carefully thought out decision. The 1840s saw the emergence of a very different trend: thousands of extremely desperate people crammed into passenger boats hoping to find any type of opportunity. The Irish of this decade had seen their homeland severely stricken by crop failures which resulted in widespread disease and starvation. At whatever time the Irish immigrants came to North America, they were instrumental in the rapid development of the emerging nations of the United States and what would become known as Canada. An exhaustive search of passenger and immigration lists has revealed many persons bearing the name McNearney, or one of its variants: Pat and Thomas McInerheny settled in Canada in 1847; Dennis, John, and Margaret McInerny arrived in Philadelphia in 1854; Denis, John, and Thomas McInnerney arrived in Philadelphia in 1866..
- MacLysaght, Edward, Supplement to Irish Families. Baltimore: Genealogical Book Company, 1964. Print.
- MacLysaght, Edward, More Irish Families. Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-0126-0)
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