Show ContentsMelly History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The surname Melly originally appeared in Gaelic as "O Maille."

Early Origins of the Melly family

The surname Melly was first found in County Mayo (Irish: Maigh Eo) located on the West coast of the Republic of Ireland in the province of Connacht, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

"The O'Malley's were celebrated Chiefs whose territory comprised the present Baronies of Murrisk and Burrishoole in the County Mayo. The Malleys and O'Malleys are now located principally in the two baronies named, and in that of Erris, in County Mayo. " [1]

Early History of the Melly family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Melly research. Another 44 words (3 lines of text) covering the years 1503, 1603, 1760, 1843 and 1854 are included under the topic Early Melly History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Melly Spelling Variations

People who were accounted for by scribes and church officials often had their name recorded many different ways because pronunciation was the only guide those scribes and church officials had to go by. This resulted in the problem of one person's name being recorded under several different variations, creating the illusion of more than one person. Among the many spelling variations of the surname Melly that are preserved in archival documents are Malley, Mallay, Mally, O'Mally, Mailley, O'Malley, O'Mailey, Mailey, Maley, Mealey, Mealley, Meally and many more.

Early Notables of the Melly family

Another 44 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Melly Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Melly migration to the United States +

A great mass of Ireland's native population left the island in the 19th century, seeking relief from various forms of social, religious, and economic discrimination. This Irish exodus was primarily to North America. If the migrants survived the long ocean journey, many unfortunately would find more discrimination in the colonies of British North America and the fledgling United States of America. These newly arrived Irish were, however, wanted as a cheap source of labor for the many large agricultural and industrial projects that were essential to the development of what would become two of the wealthiest nations in the western world. Early immigration and passenger lists indicate many people bearing the Melly name:

Melly Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Andrew Anthony Melly, who arrived in New York, NY in 1833 [2]
  • Michael Melly, who landed in St Clair County, Illinois in 1860 [2]


  1. Matheson, Robert E., Special Report on Surnames in Ireland with Notes as to Numeric Strength, Derivation, Ethnology, and Distribution. Dublin: Alexander Thom & Co., 1894. Print
  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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