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Conner History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Suggested Reading Citations

Conner History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland-Alt
Ireland
England

Etymology of Conner

What does the name Conner mean?

Today's Irish surnames are underpinned by a multitude of rich histories. The name Conner originally appeared in Gaelic as Ó Conchobhair, derived from the personal name Conchobhar. 1

Early Origins of the Conner family

The surname Conner was first found in Connacht. There were six different septs of this famous name scattered throughout Ireland, of which four continue to boast many members. However, the most important O'Connors were those of Connacht, divided into three main branches: O'Conor Don; O'Conor Roe; and O'Conor Sligo.

The Connacht O'Connors were direct descendants of Conchobhar, King of Connacht, who died in 971 AD. Furthermore, this family produced the last two High Kings of Ireland: Turlough O'Connor (1088-1156) and Roderick O'Connor (1116-1196). It was the invasion of Leinster by Roderick O'Conner on behalf of the Prince of West Brefney that caused the King of Leinster, Dermod MacMorough, to flee to England for aid. This resulted in the Strongbow Invasion of 1168, the beginning of English domination over Ireland.

Despite remaining stubbornly Catholic, the O'Connor family continued to maintain their elite position among the Irish nobility throughout the entire period of British dominance.

Early History of the Conner family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Conner research. Another 182 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1002, 1641, 1652, 1666, 1698, 1710, 1763, 1791, 1838, 1852 and 1906 are included under the topic Early Conner History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Conner Spelling Variations

Names from the Middle Ages demonstrate many spelling variations. This is because the recording scribe or church official often decided as to how a person's name was spelt and in what language. Research into the name Conner revealed many variations, including Connor, Conner, Conor, Connors, O'Connor, Connores, Conner, Connar, Connars, O'Connar, O'Conner, Connair, Connairs, Connaire, Connaires, Cawner, Cawners, Caunnor, Cauner, Cauners and many more.

Early Notables of the Conner family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Cabrach O'Conor and Hugh O'Connor, son and grandson of O'Conor Don, took a prominent part in the 1641-1652 warsBernard Connor or O'Connor (1666?-1698), Irish physician and historian, descended from an ancient Irish family...
Another 41 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Conner Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Conner Ranking

In the United States, the name Conner is the 393^rd most popular surname with an estimated 72,123 people with that name. 2

Conner migration to the United States +

To escape the religious and political discrimination they experienced primarily at the hands of the English, thousands of Irish left their homeland in the 19th century. These migrants typically settled in communities throughout the East Coast of North America, but also joined the wagon trains moving out to the Midwest. Ironically, when the American War of Independence began, many Irish settlers took the side of England, and at the war's conclusion moved north to Canada. These United Empire Loyalists, were granted land along the St. Lawrence River and the Niagara Peninsula. Other Irish immigrants settled in Newfoundland, the Ottawa Valley, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The greatest influx of Irish immigrants, however, came to North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Thousands left Ireland at this time for North America and Australia. Many of those numbers, however, did not live through the long sea passage. These Irish settlers to North America were immediately put to work building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. Irish settlers made an inestimable contribution to the building of the New World. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name Conner or a variant listed above, including:

Conner Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Conner who settled in Plymouth, arriving on the "Fortune" in 1621, just a year after the "Mayflower"
William Conner, who arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621 3
Phillip Conner, aged 21, who arrived in Virginia in 1634 aboard the ship "Bonaventure" coming via St. Domingo 3
Philip Conner, who arrived in Maryland in 1640 3
Mary Conner, who landed in Maryland in 1648 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Conner Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Turler Conner, who arrived in Virginia in 1705 3
Lewis Conner, who arrived in Virginia in 1711 3
Edward Conner, who landed in Virginia in 1713 3
John Conner, who landed in Virginia in 1714 3
Dennis Conner, who landed in Virginia in 1715 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Conner Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Michael Conner, who arrived in America in 1811 3
Barnard Conner, aged 33, who arrived in New York in 1812 3
John W Conner, who landed in Texas in 1835 3
Daniel Conner, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1838 3
Peter Conner, who landed in Mississippi in 1838 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Conner Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Fred Conner, who landed in Mobile, Ala in 1906 3

Conner migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Conner Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

John Conner, who landed in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1749-1752
Mr. John Conner U.E. who settled in Canada c. 1783 4
Mr. John Conner U.E. who settled in St. Andrews, Charlotte County, New Brunswick c. 1783 4
Mr. John Conner U.E. who settled in New Brunswick c. 1783 member of the Cape Ann Association 4
Mr. Robert Conner U.E. who settled in St. Andrews, Charlotte County, New Brunswick c. 1783; member of the Port Matoon Association 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Conner Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Bartholomew Conner, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1803
John Conner, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1832
Samuel Conner, aged 17, a cabinet maker, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Bartley" in 1833
Matilda Conner, aged 43, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Salus" in 1833
John Conner, aged 18, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Forth" in 1833
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Conner migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Conner Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Conner, English convict who was convicted in Westminster, London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Fanny" on 25th August 1815, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 5
Mr. John Conner, Scottish convict who was convicted in Edinburgh, Scotland for life, transported aboard the "Eliza" on 13th July 1822, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mr. John Conner, English convict who was convicted in Essex, England for life, transported aboard the "Captain Cook" on 2nd May 1833, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
Mr. William Conner, English convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Elphinstone" on 20th January 1836, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 8
Mr. John Conner, (Michael), (b. 1808), aged 30, Irish labourer who was convicted in County Kerry, Ireland for 10 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Clyde" on 11th May 1838, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Conner 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:

Conner Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Thomas Conner, aged 42, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Inchinnan" in 1852 10
Catherine Conner, aged 39, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Inchinnan" in 1852 10
John Conner, aged 3, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Inchinnan" in 1852 10
Mr. James Conner, (b. 1831), aged 22, British labourer travelling from London, UK aboard the ship "Maori" arriving at Nelson, New Zealand on 8th June 1853 11
Nathaniel Conner, aged 23, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Shamrock" in 1855
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Conner (post 1700) +

Van Conner (1967-2023), American rock musician, best known as the bassist for Screaming Trees
Pierre Euclide Conner (1932-2018), American mathematician from Houston who worked on algebraic topology and differential topology, fellow of the American Mathematical Society in 2012
William Conner (1777-1855), American trader, interpreter, scout, and interpreter for the American forces in the War of 1812, founder of Hamilton County, Indiana
Finis Conner, American founder of Conner Peripherals
Commodore David Conner (1792-1856), American officer of the United States Navy, whose service included the War of 1812 and the Mexican-American War, eponym of the destroyers USS Conner (DD-72) and the USS Conner (DD-582)
Chris Ryan Conner (b. 1983), American professional NHL ice hockey player
Tara Elizabeth Conner (b. 1985), American beauty queen and model, Miss USA 2006
Bruce Conner (1933-2008), American artist renowned for his work in film, drawing, sculpture, painting, collage, and photography
Fox Conner (1874-1951), United States Army Major General in World War I
Dennis Conner (b. 1942), American yachtsman and four-time America's Cup winner
... (Another 2 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Conner family +

Flight 191

J Conner (d. 1979), American passenger from Los Angeles, California, USA, who flew aboard American Airlines Flight 191 and died in the crash 12

RMS Lusitania

Miss Dorothy Conner, American 1st Class Passenger from Medford, Oregon, USA, who sailed aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking 13

The Conner Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: O Dhia gach an cabhair
Motto Translation: From God Every Help

Citations +

MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 28th September 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/fairlie
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 15th February 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eliza
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/captain-cook
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elphinstone
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 24th February 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/clyde
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Genies' Jottings Various Ships Lists Maori (Retrieved 26th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.ozlists.com/genies/shipping/news_nz/nz_maori.htm
Flight 191's Victims - latimes. (Retrieved 2014, April 16) . Retrieved from http://articles.latimes.com/1985-08-04/news/mn-4349_1_fort-lauderdale-area
Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/