Show ContentsClancy History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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  • Ireland
Clancy Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Etymology of Clancy

What does the name Clancy mean?

The Irish surnames in use today are underpinned by a multitude of rich histories. The name Clancy originally appeared in Gaelic as Mac Fhlannchaidh. The exact meaning of this name is undetermined; it can be translated as "son of Fhlannchadh," where "flann" means "reddish" or "ruddy." However, whether "caidh" denotes warrior as has been asserted is unknown.

Early Origins of the Clancy family

The surname Clancy was first found in Counties Clare and Leitrim. The more important of the two MacClancy septs were a branch of the MacNamaras and were from the north of County Clare, where they gave their name to Cathermacclancy. They traced their lineage from the Heber kings, and provided hereditary brehons (judges) to the O'Briens. They were most numerous in County Clare and the neighboring counties of Galway and Tipperary. The other sept of MacClancys were indigenous to Leitrim, and were Chiefs of Darty or Rosclogher. 1

Early History of the Clancy family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Clancy research. Another 85 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Clancy History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Clancy Spelling Variations

Names written in official documents were generally spelt as they sounded, leading to the problem of one name being recorded under several different variations, creating the illusion in records of more than one person. Among the many spelling variations of the surname Clancy that are preserved in documents of the family history are Clancy, Clancey, Clanchey, Clanchy, Clansey and many more.

Early Notables of the Clancy family

  • Clancy, Chief of Dartry

Clancy Ranking

In Australia, the name Clancy is the 729th most popular surname with an estimated 5,332 people with that name. 2 However, in the United States, the name Clancy is ranked the 3,043rd most popular surname with an estimated 9,948 people with that name. 3

Clancy migration to Australia+

Clancy Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Thomas Clancy, (b. 1792), aged 35, Irish farm servant who was convicted in Tipperary, Ireland for 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Eliza" on 19th July 1827, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 4
  • Mr. Terence Clancy, (b. 1808), aged 26, Scottish gardener who was convicted in Glasgow, Scotland for life for uttering forged notes, transported aboard the "Bengal Merchant" on 27th September 1834, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1843 5
  • Mr. Richard Clancy, (Clancey), (b. 1793), aged 47, Irish butcher who was convicted in Limerick, Ireland for 7 years for receiving stolen goods, transported aboard the "British Sovereign" on 16th December 1840, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land), he died in 1853 6
  • Michael Clancy, aged 37, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1849 aboard the ship "Constance" 7
  • James Clancy, aged 38, a farm servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1854 aboard the ship "Sir Thomas Gresham" 8
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Clancy 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:

Clancy Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • D. Clancy, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Ulcoats" in 1864
  • John Clancy, who arrived in Lyttelton, New Zealand aboard the ship "Blairgowrie" in 1875
  • Bridget Clancy, who arrived in Lyttelton, New Zealand aboard the ship "Blairgowrie" in 1875

Clancy migration to Canada+

Clancy Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Patrick Clancy, who settled in Quebec with his wife and five sons in 1825
  • Michael Clancy, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1830
  • William Clancy, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1831
  • James Clancy, aged 34, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1833 aboard the ship "Britannia" from Sligo, Ireland
  • John Clancy, aged 26, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1834 aboard the brig "Lady Douglas" from New Ross
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Clancy migration to the United States+



Clancy Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Felix Clancy, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1739 9
Clancy Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Robert Clancy, who arrived in New York, NY in 1816 9
  • James Clancy, aged 24, who arrived in Missouri in 1840 9
  • John Clancy, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1840 9
  • Patrick Clancy, aged 22, who landed in Missouri in 1848 9
  • Joseph J Clancy, who landed in America in 1850 9
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Clancy (post 1700)+

  • William "Liam" Clancy (1935-2009), Irish folk singer
  • George "Seoirse" Clancy (1881-1921), Irish nationalist politician and Mayor of Limerick who was shot dead, he was the inspiration for the character Michael Davin, in Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
  • John Joseph "J.J." Clancy (1847-1928), Irish nationalist politician, one of the leaders of the later Irish Home Rule movement and promoter of the Housing of the Working Classes (Ireland) Act 1908, known as the Clancy Act
  • Tim Clancy (b. 1984), Irish professional footballer who has played since 2003
  • George Clancy (b. 1977), Irish international rugby union referee
  • James "Jim" Clancy (1955-2025), American former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played from 1977 to 1991
  • Thomas Leo Clancy (1918-1995), American United States Postal Service worker, father of Tom Clancy
  • Catherine Mary Clancy (1918-2001), (née Langan), American store's credit department worker, mother of Tom Clancy
  • Thomas "Tom" Clancy Jr. (1947-2013), American author of political thrillers, probably best known for his novels The Hunt for Red October (1984) and Patriot Games (1987), both of which were turned into blockbuster movies
  • ... (Another 10 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Halifax Explosion
  • Mr. Ralph  Clancy, Canadian resident from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 10
  1. MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)
  2. "Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
  3. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  4. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th February 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eliza
  5. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 7th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/bengal-merchant
  6. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/british-sovereign
  7. State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) CONSTANCE 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Constance.htm
  8. South Australian Register Monday 20th March 1854. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Sir Thomas Gresham 1854. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/sirthomasgresham1854.shtml
  9. 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)
  10. Halifax Explosion Book of Remembrance | Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. (Retrieved 2014, June 23) . Retrieved from https://maritimemuseum.novascotia.ca/what-see-do/halifax-explosion/halifax-explosion-book-remembrance

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