The Gaelic name used by the O'Harney family in ancient Ireland was Ó hAthairne, which is possibly derived from the word athardha, which means paternal. 1
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Early Origins of the O'Harney family
The surname O'Harney was first found in Connacht (Irish: Connachta, (land of the) descendants of Conn), where they held a family seat from very ancient times.
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Early History of the O'Harney family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our O'Harney research. Another 74 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early O'Harney History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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O'Harney Spelling Variations
The spelling of names in Ireland during the Middle Ages was rarely consistent. This inconsistency was due to the scribes and church officials' attempts to record orally defined names in writing. The common practice of recording names as they sounded resulted in spelling variations such as Harney, Hartney, O'Harney, Hartney, Harnedy, Harnet, Harnett, Hartnet, Hartnett, Haherny and many more.
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Early Notables of the O'Harney family
Notable amongst the family name at this time was
O'Harney of Connacht
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Migration of the O'Harney family
Many destitute Irish families in the 18th and 19th centuries decided to leave their homeland, which had in many ways been scarred by English colonial rule. One of the most frequent destinations for these families was North America where it was possible for an Irish family to own their own parcel of land. Many of the early settlers did find land awaiting them in British North America, or even later in America, but for the majority of immigrants that arrived as a result of the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s the ownership of land was often a long way off. These Irish people were initially put to work on such industrial projects as the building of bridges, canals, and railroads, or they worked at manufacturing positions within factories. Whenever they arrived, the Irish made enormous contributions to the infant nations of Canada and the United States. Some of the earliest immigrants to bearer the name of O'Harney were found through extensive research of immigration and passenger lists: Edward Harnet settled in Salem Massachusetts in 1640; and he was reported from "suffering from favouring the Quakers"; James, Ann, John, Patrick and William Harnet all arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860.
Ireland
