There is no other book like this one! A magnificent world class
illustration of Irish Family History, this book is the culmination of four
decades of research by the Irish Genealogical Foundation. Hundreds of families
from each county are given in Part One with family history. Over 45,000 family
names are given in specific counties or Poor Law Unions. This is the new third
edition (2003), which includes select family histories. For the first time ever,
the index for the first 28 volumes in the Irish Families set is also included.
The famous and large families like Murphy, Kelly, Sullivan, O'Brien, Ryan,
Kennedy, Walsh, Daugherty and Donahue are of course in this book, as are
thousands more, including rarely found families that settled in Ireland from
England, Scotland, Wales, and the continent. Among the hundreds of settler names
are those of Betagh; Coppinger; Trench; Coplan; Hall; Green; Hunter; McKenzie;
Baker; Howell; Bellew and many more.
Families from England
Many English families have settled in Ireland from the 12th century onwards.
Often, the native Irish were forced to "translate" their names into English
sounding ones. The 50 most numerous names from England in 1853 are given, along
with hundreds of family history extracts on specific families like Smith; Jones;
Williams and Taylor.
Families from Scotland
Due to the proximity of the north of Ireland and the south of Scotland,
migration between the two countries has been constant. A great settlement of
Scottish families took place in the 17th century during the plantation of Ulster
by the British Crown. Later, some of these 'planter' families came to America,
becoming known as the Scotch Irish or Scots Irish. The 50 most numerous names of
Scotland are given, along with hundreds of family histories, including families
like McDonald; Brown; Thomson and Robertson.
Families from the German Palatinate
Families came to Ireland in the 18th century from the Palatinate of the Rhine.
In 1709 some 7,000 arrived in England and many settled in Co. Limerick, Ireland
and America. Some of these are families like Bowen, Baker; Delmege and Pyper.
Danish or Viking Families
The Danes (Lochlainders, Ostmen or Vikings), had colonies in Ireland for
centuries. Centered in Dublin and Meath (in Fingall), and in Wexford, Waterford,
Cork and Limerick, settling primarily in the coastal counties of Ireland from
the 8th century on. These Viking families include: Betagh; Coppinger; Palmer;
Plunket and Skiddy, among many others given in this work.
Jewish Families in Ireland
Many Russian and Polish Jews settled on the south side of Dublin city from the
late 1800's. These included the families of Coplan, Fridberg, Greenberg, Weiner,
Maisell and many others given in this work.
Welsh Families in Ireland
Families by the name of "Walsh" (in Irish, Brannagh or Breathnach), meaning a
Briton or Welshman, are found early in Cork, Dublin, Kerry, Killarney,
Tipperary, Wexford, Waterford and Galway. Some of these families were: Howell,
Lawless, Lillis, Lynagh and Rossiter. Many are included in this work
Anglo Norman Families in Ireland
The Anglo Norman invasions of the 12th century brought many new families to
Ireland. Some took on Irish names. Anglo Norman families in Ireland include:
Barry; Bellew; Bermingham; Burke; Carew and Clare, among hundreds of others
given in this book along with family history notes.
Huguenot Families in Ireland
French and Fleming Huguenot families settled in the 17th century in Dublin,
Kilkenny, Waterford, Cork, and Lisburn, etc... They were noted for making linen,
cloth and lace. Some of these families were those of Barre; Perrin; Hazard;
Hassard; Lefanu; Trench and many others as given in this work.
'Irish Families Great and Small' contains many family names left out of other
popular works, including those of Edward MacLysaght, Patrick Woulfe and John
O'Hart. The best single book for finding any Irish family surname, there are
more names, arms, and locations here than in any other book . Truly a 'must
have' resource for finding numerous and scarce names in Ireland.
Contents:
- Province Map
- Introduction
- Notes
- Settlement Maps
- Source List
- Family Research
Part One: Origins, History, Arms.
- Family History from the Archives of the Irish Genealogical Foundation
Being selections from a vast collection of materials. Intended as a vital first
step for all family researchers and historians. This section
gives 2,000 bold face family entries, covering every county in Ireland. Old
Irish Families; The Scots Irish or Scotch Irish; the English; the Welsh; The
French Huguenot; the Viking or Danish; the Anglo-Norman, and Jewish families in
Ireland are all included here. Included in this section are over 600 documented
illustrations of Irish family coats of arms. The family history entries run up
to one full column in length. Information includes, as available: Origins;
Locations; Other forms of spelling the name; Extracts from the 1659 census,
Keatings History, Irish Pedigrees, the birth index and more. There are 268 full
size pages in this section alone.
Part Two: Location Index
- Over 10,000 family locations in Ireland. Specific names tied to specific
locations
Being locations from the 17th to the 19th centuries. This section was actually
is designed strictly to narrow your search to a specific county, registrars
district, or Poor Law Union in Ireland. It is specially helpful for finding rare
names. Names like Haryson; Hazley; Guyn; Flenten; Vesey, and Faraday are located
just like more numerous families are. As all researchers know, finding the
county of origin in Ireland is the first step to a successful search! There are
no extra notations for names in this section, it simply ties families to
specific locations in Ireland, based upon Foundation records.
Part Three: The Master Index (new in this third edition)
- Includes the full name index to this book, PLUS the surname index to the
27 other volumes in the Irish Families series
This has been particularly helpful for researchers wanting to narrow the search
to a specific county in Ireland. As the other 27 volumes in the set cover all 32
counties in Ireland and Northern Ireland, every county is covered. This provides
you with a possible resource for further study. In all, there are 45,000 entries
in this section. Each index entry gives you either the page number your family
name is found on in this book, plus the volume number of any other book in the
series that contains your family name.
The index to each of the following books is included in this section:
Families of County Kerry, Ireland
Families of County Clare, Ireland
Families of County Cork, Ireland
Families of County Galway, Ireland
Families of County Dublin, Ireland
Families of County Donegal, Ireland
Families of County Limerick, Ireland
County Armagh Genealogy & family history extracts
County Antrim & Belfast: Genealogy
County Down: Genealogy
County Tipperary: Genealogy
County Waterford: Genealogy
County Derry (Londonderry) Genealogy
County Wexford Genealogy
County Sligo Genealogy
County Mayo Genealogy
County Tyrone Genealogy
County Cork Genealogy
County Kilkenny Genealogy
County Longford Genealogy
County Monaghan Genealogy
County Roscommon: Genealogy.
Co Cavan & Co Leitrim Genealogy
County Meath & Westmeath Genealogy
Kings (Offaly) & Queens (Leix/Laois) Counties, genealogy
County Kidlare, Wicklow & Carlow genealogy
County Fermanagh and Louth genealogy
