Donnelly (surname)

Donnelly is an Irish surname. It is derived from the Gaelic Ó Donnghaile[1] meaning 'descendant of Donnghal',[2] a given name composed of the elements donn ('dark', 'brown') plus gal ('valour').[1] O'Donnelly is derived from the descendants of Donnghal,[3] the great grandson of Domhnall, King of Ailech.[4] Early ancestors of this surname were a part of Cenél nEoghain, a branch of the Northern Uí Néill.

For other uses, see Donnelly (disambiguation).

It is most commonly found in Ulster, especially in County Tyrone and in parts of County Donegal.[5] Donnelly is also prevalent in Connacht, particularly in County Galway and was so common in Roscommon that at some point, a branch of people with the Donnelly surname took on the name of Briscoe instead.[6]

Notable Donnellys

Fictional people

Other spellings

See also

References
  1. Norman, Tess (2003). A World of Baby Names. Penguin. p. 286. ISBN 9780399528941.
  2. "Last name: Donnelly". The Internet Surname Database.
  3. The most accurate source for the pedigree of Donnghaile (Donnelly) can be found in O’Cleary, Michael, et al., Annals of the Four Masters, see O‘Donovan's edition Volume 6, page 2426. Other Irish genealogies (Book of Ballymote and Book of Lecan) have the line of descent of Donnghaile incorrectly stated as the great grandson of Domnall Ilchelgach, High King who died in 561 A.D.
  4. King Domhnall served as co-ruler of Cenél nEoghain from about 896 A.D. with his paternal half brother Niall Glundub until 911 A.D. when King Domhnall abdicated to “enter religious life” and subsequently died in 915 A.D. Hudson, Benjamin, Prophecy of Berchan,Irish and Scottish High Kings in the Middle Ages, Greenwood Press 1996 page 148.
  5. Kenny, Kevin (1998). Making Sense of the Molly Maguires. Oxford University Press. p. 300. ISBN 9780195116311.
  6. Radford, Dwight A.; Betit, Kyle J. (2012). A Genealogist's Guide to Discovering Your Irish Ancestors. Betterway Books. p. 12. ISBN 9781440324284.
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