Show ContentsQuinney History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Irish name Quinney was originally written in a Gaelic form as Ó Coinne, which means descendant of Coinneach. The personal name Coinneach was often Anglicized to Canice or Kenny.

Early Origins of the Quinney family

The surname Quinney 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, where they held a family seat from ancient times. They were directly descended from King Colla da Crioch, the Irish King of Ulster, who was banished to Scotland with 350 Clann chiefs in the year 327.

Early History of the Quinney family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Quinney research. Another 114 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1585, 1589, 1662, 1663 and 1682 are included under the topic Early Quinney History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Quinney Spelling Variations

Just like the English language, the Gaelic language of Ireland was not standardized in the Middle Ages. Therefore, one's name was often recorded under several different spellings during the life of its bearer. Spelling variations revealed in the search for the origins of the Quinney family name include Quinney, Guinney, Guiney, Gunny, Gunie, Gunney, O'Quinney, O'Guinney and many more.

Early Notables of the Quinney family

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

Quinney Ranking

In the United States, the name Quinney is the 15,698th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1


United States Quinney migration to the United States +

Ireland became inhospitable for many native Irish families in the 19th centuries. Poverty, lack of opportunities, high rents, and discrimination forced thousands to leave the island for North America. The largest exodus of Irish settlers occurred with the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. For these immigrants the journey to British North America and the United States was long and dangerous and many did not live to see the shores of those new lands. Those who did make it were essential to the development of what would become two of the wealthiest and most powerful nations of the world. These Irish immigrants were not only important for peopling the new settlements and cities, they also provided the manpower needed for the many industrial and agricultural projects so essential to these growing nations. Immigration and passenger lists have documented the arrival of various people bearing the name Quinney to North America:

Quinney Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Anne Quinney, who landed in Maryland in 1681 2
  • Rose Quinney, who arrived in Maryland in 1681 2
  • Sutton Quinney, who landed in Maryland in 1681 2

Canada Quinney migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Quinney Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Miss. Ellen Quinney, aged 3 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Triton" departing 14th May 1847 from Liverpool, England; the ship arrived on 24th July 1847 but she died on board 3

Australia Quinney migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Quinney Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

New Zealand Quinney migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Quinney Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Mr. L Quinney, (b. 1848), aged 26, English blacksmith stricker from Warwickshire travelling from London aboard the ship "Tweed" arriving in Port Chalmers, Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 4th September 1874 5
  • Mrs. Mary Quinney, (b. 1848), aged 26, English settler from Warwickshire travelling from London aboard the ship "Tweed" arriving in Port Chalmers, Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 4th September 1874 5
  • Miss Mary Quinney, (b. 1873), aged 1, English settler from Warwickshire travelling from London aboard the ship "Tweed" arriving in Port Chalmers, Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 4th September 1874 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Quinney (post 1700) +

  • H. Roberts Quinney, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 1952 (alternate), 1956 6
  • Brigadier-General Robert Quinney Brown (1907-1973), American Commanding Officer Artillery 2nd Armored Division (1958-1961) 7

HMS Royal Oak
  • George Quinney (1916-1939), British Marine with the Royal Marine aboard the HMS Royal Oak (1939) when she was torpedoed by U-47 and sunk; he died in the sinking 8


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  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)
  3. Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 93)
  4. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 3rd March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elizabeth
  5. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  6. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 8) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  7. Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, November 3) Robert Brown. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Brown/Robert_Quinney/USA.html
  8. Ships hit by U-boats crew list HMS Royal Oak (08) - (Retrieved 2018 February, 9th) - retrieved from https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/crews/ship68.html


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