Like, if you have Scottish blood and can trace your family name ie McDonald - you can say you're descended from the McDonald "clan".
My great grandmother's maiden name was O'Brian (with an "a" rather than O'BriEn), and her mother's maiden name was Cronan. Are these like "clans"?
We've done a bit of family history research and found out that they were from Cork and Waterford, but not sure exactly where. They came to Newport, Gwent (South Wales) in the 19th Century and apparently they spoke Gaelic. We'd love to find out more but not sure where to start.
2007-08-21 00:55:49 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Cultures & Groups ➔ Other - Cultures & Groups
Orla - it may be a misspelling - we've seen the names marked down as O'Brian and Cronan but as you say it may have been mispelled, they were Gaelic speakers and didn't read or write any English so I guess they wouldn't have been able to explain how it was spelled. We've also seen the name written down as "Brien" or "Bryan" without the O'. apparently this often happened when the person writing things down wasn't sure of the spelling.
2007-08-21 05:39:08 · update #1
First of all, O'Brien and similar is one of the most popular Irish names. I'm suspicious of the way you spell it, I've never seen it this way - are you sure that the official in Gwent who noted down their names didn't misspell it the first time he heard it? It wouldn't be the first time this has happened.
I've seen the name 'Cronin', but not 'Cronan' - doesn't mean it isn't there, though.
Lots of people from outside of Dublin and the cities spoke Irish (which is what we in Ireland call our version of Gaelic) as their first language during the 19th century, so this would not have been anything special for Cork and Waterford.
Also, people have moved around quite a lot over the past 200 years, so you can't be sure that there are still any relatives in the areas you mentioned.
However, I can think of one thing you could do - if you have the first names and approximate dates of birth of your relatives, you can try getting in touch with the different Catholic churches in the counties of Cork and Waterford. It's a long process and maybe you might get some tips while you're at it.
Incidentally, 'clan' is another word for 'family', and is believed to be from the Irish/Gaelic word 'clann' which means 'family'. The word is used more in Northern Ireland, which has much stronger cultural links to Scotland than the south.
Good luck.
2007-08-21 02:18:11 · answer #1 · answered by Orla C 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Clans aren't set up the same way as they are in Scotland. There is no history of the families that are part of the Clan or Sept.
They have proven males with the same surnames have genetic links so anyone with the same surname have a common ancestor.
Unfortunately, bar an expensive DNA test, you could not prove family history passed the Great Famine, this is because these records were destroyed in a fire.
The Department of Births, Deaths and Marriages would be your best bet for any information that remains:
www.birthsdeathsmarriages.ie
Also, in terms of how the names are written, the name is more than likely seperate from the O'Brien or other family names. For example, O'Byrne and O'Beirne are both pronounced Burn but are not related in the slightest.
2007-08-22 03:00:20 · answer #2 · answered by eorpach_agus_eireannach 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The Chief of the Name is the recognized head of a family or clan. The term is in use as a title in Ireland and Scotland where Celtic traditions still survive.
Check out the link below, it is a list of Irish Clan names
2007-08-21 02:19:27 · answer #3 · answered by mr_scotsguy 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The scotch originally came from Ireland. yes there were/are clanns (note the double n) for the Irish but have been mixed with other peoples, danes, anglo saxon, spanish, greek etc over the centuries. The clans of scotland were revived by the victorians who considered them romantic which is why they seem more in evidence today.
Best of luck with your search
am also a Bellew
2007-08-21 02:23:31 · answer #4 · answered by kieran b 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Orla C has the best answer. But it doesnt really matter how surnames are spelt in english in irish they would be the same. For example my surname is Mannion, Ó Mainín in Irish. But in english there are a few diffrent versions such as Manning, Manion and McMannion. They are really the same surname.
2007-08-21 04:41:27 · answer #5 · answered by michealomainin 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Scots / Welsh / Irish & thos on the atlantic coast of France / portugal are all of the same and yes we do have clans in Ireland and like elsewhere there's a lot of bloody history associated with it. Theres loads of places to check out Irish names along with the associated crests and irish tartans - as usual the yanks have loads of stuff on line...LOL
2007-08-21 01:02:36 · answer #6 · answered by Paul S 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
There were kings of Ireland and families of the same name, names that were not related to jobs such as Carpenter, Wood, Roberts etc.
There were `clans` but they did not call them clans, they called them `families.`
2007-08-21 01:08:59 · answer #7 · answered by Montgomery B 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
No, the Clans are an exclusively Scottish thing. You can still refer to your family as a 'clan,' but technically you wouldn't be correct. That doesn't mean to say that Irish families were any less closely knit; the clan was a power structure as well as a family one.
2007-08-21 01:00:14 · answer #8 · answered by Jack W 3 · 0⤊ 4⤋
yes i am fromt he mcDonald clan actually and i do have a very large family tree that is placed on the tree out back i think it goes back to the 17th centery, they are good to have and your kids might want them later on!
Hope this helps
Randomizer
P.S. i am looking for best answer points
2007-08-21 01:00:29 · answer #9 · answered by Blue Blue 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes..i am clan Bellew
2007-08-21 01:41:33 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋