Oherlihy History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• Ireland

Etymology of Oherlihy

The name Oherlihy has undergone many variations in the time that has passed since its genesis. In Gaelic it appeared as Ó hUirthile.

Early Origins of the Oherlihy family

Early History of the Oherlihy family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Oherlihy research. Another 84 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1562, 1570 and 1626 are included under the topic Early Oherlihy History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Oherlihy Spelling Variations

Lacking standardized spellings, scribes and church officials recorded people's name according to how they sounded. This practice often led to the misleading result of one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname Oherlihy are preserved in the archival documents of the period. The various spellings of the name that were found include Herlihy, O'Herlihy, Herley, Herly, Hurley, O'Hurley, Murrily and many more.

Early Notables of the Oherlihy family

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

Migration of the Oherlihy family

A great wave of Irish migration occurred during the 19th century as a direct result of English colonial rule and tight-fisted absentee landlords. Many of these Irish immigrants boarded passenger ships bound for North America. Those who migrated early enough were given land in either British North America or the United States; those who came in the late 19th century were typically employed in industrial centers as laborers. At whatever age they undertook the dangerous passage to North America, those Irish immigrants were essential to the speedy development of the two infant nations to which they arrived, whether they broke and settled land, helped build canals, bridges, and railroads, or produced products for consumer consumption. An examination of immigration and passenger lists has uncovered a large number of immigrants bearing the name Oherlihy or one of its variants: Bartholomew Hearlihy settled in Philadelphia in 1857; Daniel Herlihey settled in Philadelphia in 1868; John Herlihy settled in Philadelphia in 1876; Jacob Herley settled in Philadelphia in 1753..