Nihill Surname, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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Irish names tend to vary widely in their spelling and overall form. The original Gaelic form of the name Nihill is Ó Néill, which means descendant of Niall, a personal name of Irish origin, thought to mean "champion."

Nihill Early Origins

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The surname Nihill was first found in County Tyrone (Irish: Tír Eoghain), the ancient territory of the O'Neills, now in the Province of Ulster, central Northern Ireland, and County Clare where O'Neill was chief of Clan Dalvy and of Tradree, a district in the barony of Inchiquinn. In the 10th century, a branch of this family went to Limerick to assist in the expulsion of the Danes. After one victorious occasion they wore green boughs in their helmets and on their horses' heads signifying their victory.

Nihill Spelling Variations

The Middle Ages saw a great number of spelling variations for surnames common to the Irish landscape. One reason for these variations is the fact that surnames were not rigidly fixed by this period. The following variations for the name Nihill were encountered in the archives: O'Neill, Neal, Neale, Neales, Neil, Nihill, Niell, O'Nail, O'Neil, O'Niel and many more.

Nihill Early History

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Nihill research. Another 215 words (15 lines of text) covering the years 1480, 1559, 1530, 1567, 1550, 1616, 1612, 1664, 1694, 1689 and 1689 are included under the topic Early Nihill History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Nihill Early Notables (pre 1700)

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Sir Niall O'Neill who distinguished himself at the Battle of the Boyne; Conn O'Neill, 1st Earl of Tyrone (c.1480-1559) King of Tir Eogain; Shane O'Neill (c.1530-1567), Irish king of the O'Neill dynasty of Ulster; Hugh O'Neill (c. 1550-1616), Earl of Tyrone, also...

Another 61 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Nihill Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

The Great Migration

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Nihill Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mary Nihill, aged 22, a servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1854 aboard the ship "Dirigo" ^[1]CITATION[CLOSE]
South Australian Register Thursday 23rd November 1854. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Dirigo 1854. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/dirigo1854.shtml.
Patrick Nihill, aged 28, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1856 aboard the ship "Australia"
Bridget Nihill, aged 26, a servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1856 aboard the ship "Australia"
Daniel Nihill, aged 28, a farm labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1859 aboard the ship "North"

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Citations

^ South Australian Register Thursday 23rd November 1854. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Dirigo 1854. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/dirigo1854.shtml.

Other References

Best, Hugh. Debrett's Texas Peerage. New York: Coward-McCann, 1983. Print. (ISBN 069811244X).
Zieber, Eugene. Heraldry in America. Philadelphia: Genealogical Publishing Co. Print.
Heraldic Scroll and Map of Family names and Origins of Ireland. Dublin: Mullins. Print.
McDonnell, Frances. Emigrants from Ireland to America 1735-1743 A Transcription of the report of the Irish House of Commons into Enforced emigration to America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-1331-5).
Harris, Ruth-Ann and B. Emer O'Keefe. The Search for Missing Friends Irish Immigrant Advertisements Placed in the Boston Pilot Volume II 1851-1853. Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1991. Print.
Kennedy, Patrick. Kennedy's Book of Arms. Canterbury: Achievements, 1967. Print.
MacLysaght, Edward. The Surnames of Ireland 3rd Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1978. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2278-0).
Fairbairn. Fairbain's book of Crests of the Families of Great Britain and Ireland, 4th Edition 2 volumes in one. Baltimore: Heraldic Book Company, 1968. Print.
MacLysaght, Edward. Mores Irish Familes. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-0126-0).
Tepper, Michael Ed & Elizabeth P. Bentley Transcriber. Passenger Arrivals at the Port of Philadelphia 1800-1819. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1986. Print.
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The Nihill Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Nihill 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 8 July 2014 at 08:15.