Silifane History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

Etymology of Silifane

What does the name Silifane mean?

All Irish surnames have a long, ancient Gaelic history behind them. The original Gaelic form of the name Silifane is Ó Suileabhain, which is partially derived from the word "suil," which means "eye." The surname probably means either one-eyed or hawk-eyed.

Early Origins of the Silifane family

The surname Silifane was first found in County Kerry (Irish:Ciarraí) part of the former County Desmond (14th-17th centuries), located in Southwestern Ireland, in Munster province, where they held a family seat from ancient times at the Castle of Ardea, where their name was Sullivan.

Early History of the Silifane family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Silifane research. Another 81 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1641 and 1921 are included under the topic Early Silifane History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Silifane Spelling Variations

In the Middle Ages many people were recorded under different spellings each time their name was written down. Research on the Silifane family name revealed numerous spelling variations, including Sylliphant, Silliphant, Syliphant, Siliphant and others.

Early Notables of the Silifane family

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

Migration of the Silifane family

Ireland saw an enormous decrease in its population in the 19th century due to immigration and death. This pattern of immigration began slowly in the late 18th century and gradually grew throughout the early portion of the 19th century. However, a dramatic increase in the country's immigration numbers occurred when the Great Potato Famine struck in the 1840s. The early immigrants to North America were primarily destined to be farmers tending to their own plot of land, those that came later initially settled within pre-established urban centers. These urban immigrants provided the cheap labor that the fast developing United States and soon to be Canada required. Regardless of their new lifestyle in North America, the Irish immigrants to the United States and Canada made invaluable contributions to their newly adopted societies. An investigation of immigrant and passenger lists revealed many Silifanes: D. Siliphant landed in America in 1840.