The Oreily surname originally appeared in Gaelic as O Raghailligh, which means descendant of Raghallach.
Early Origins of the Oreily family
The surname Oreily was first found in
County Cavan. They were known as the Princes of East
Breffny, descended from Raghallaigh, Prince of
Breffny in 981. They maintained their territory during the Anglo/
Norman invasion of
Strongbow, Earl of Pembroke, in 1172, but Sir John O'Reilly, Prince of
Breffny surrendered the principality to Queen Elizabeth I thereby ensuring that his territories remained intact.
Early History of the Oreily family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Oreily research.
Another 189 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1598, 1669, 1630, 1695, 1689, 1640, 1703, 1689, 1646 and 1691 are included under the topic Early Oreily History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Oreily Spelling Variations
Pronunciation, rather than spelling, guided scribes and church officials when recording names during the Middle Ages. This practice often resulted in one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous
spelling variations of the surname Oreily are preserved in these old documents. The various spellings of the name that were found include O'Reilly, O'Reilley, O'Reily, O'Rielly, O'Riely, O'Riley, O'Rilley, Reel and many more.
Early Notables of the Oreily family (pre 1700)
Notable amongst the family name at this time was Count John O'Reilly; Edmund O'Reilly (1598-1669), Roman Catholic Archbishop of Armagh; Hugh Reily (Reilly or O’Reilly) (c.1630-1695) Irish Member of Parliament for Cavan Borough in the Patriot...
Another 35 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Oreily Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Oreily family to the New World and Oceana
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Oreily Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
- Bridget O'Reily, aged 23, a servant, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Salisbury" in 1876
- Cornelius O'Reily, aged 40, a staymaker, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Rakaia" in 1878
- Mary O'Reily, aged 31, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Rakaia" in 1878
- Margaret O'Reily, aged 2, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Rakaia" in 1878