Contents [hide]

Curran History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables World Ranking

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Suggested Reading Sources

Curran History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

Etymology of Curran

What does the name Curran mean?

Native Irish surnames such as Curran have a long, ancient Gaelic history behind them. The original Gaelic form of the name Curran is Ó Corrain or the older form Ó Currain. 1

Early Origins of the Curran family

The surname Curran was first found in County Waterford (Irish: Port Láirge), anciently the Deise region, on the South coast of Ireland in the Province of Munster, where they held a family seat from early times.

Early History of the Curran family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Curran research. Another 145 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1302, 1411, 1526, 1546, 1750 and 1817 are included under the topic Early Curran History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Curran Spelling Variations

Individual scribes in the Ireland during the Middle Ages would often record a person's name various ways. How the name was recorded depended on what that particular scribe believed the proper spelling for the name pronounced to him was. Spelling variations revealed in the search for the origin of the Curran family name include Curran, Currans, O'Curren, Curren, Corren, Corrane, O'Curran, Currens, Currin, Corraine, Courrane, Courran, Courren and many more.

Early Notables of the Curran family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was

Andrew O'Curran was appointed Prior of Glascarrig in 1411

Curran World Ranking

In the United States, the name Curran is the 1,435^th most popular surname with an estimated 22,383 people with that name. 2 However, in Newfoundland, Canada, the name Curran is ranked the 588^th most popular surname with an estimated 78 people with that name. 3 And in Australia, the name Curran is the 510^th popular surname with an estimated 7,472 people with that name. 4 The United Kingdom ranks Curran as 595^th with 10,990 people. 5

Curran migration to the United States +

The 19th century saw a great wave of Irish migrating out of their homeland in a great measure due to the oppressive imperial policies of the English government and landowners. Many of these Irish families sailed to North America aboard overcrowded passenger ships. By far, the largest influx of Irish immigrants to North America occurred with Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s. These particular immigrants were instrumental in creation of the United States and Canada as major industrial nations because the many essential elements such as the roadways, canals, bridges, and railways required an enormous quantity of cheap labor, which these poor immigrants provided. Later generations of Irish in these countries also went on to make valuable contributions in such fields as the arts, commerce, politics, and education. Extensive research into immigration and passenger lists has revealed many early immigrants bearing the name Curran:

Curran Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Daniel Curran, who landed in Maryland in 1680 6
David Curran who settled in Maryland in 1699

Curran Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William Curran, who landed in Maryland in 1809 6
Martin Curran, aged 32, who landed in Maryland in 1813 6
Matthew Curran, aged 30, who landed in Maryland in 1813 6
Peter Curran, who landed in New York, NY in 1816 6
Thomas Curran, who landed in New York, NY in 1817 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Curran migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Curran Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Winny Curran, aged 20, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1833 aboard the ship "Britannia" from Sligo, Ireland
Catherine Curran, aged 17, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1833 aboard the ship "Britannia" from Sligo, Ireland
Michael Curran, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1833
Mary Curran, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1834
Michael Curran, aged 29, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1834 aboard the brig "Maria" from Cork, Ireland
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Curran migration to Australia +

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

Curran Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Edward Curran, Irish convict who was convicted in County Longford, Ireland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Boyd" on 10th March 1809, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
Miss Catherine Curran, (b. 1786), aged 23, Irish servant who was convicted in Cork, Ireland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Experiment" on 21st January 1809, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
Mr. Stephen Curran, English convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Baring" in April 1815, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 9
Miss Anne Curran, (Quinn), (b. 1798), aged 20, Irish servant who was convicted in County Down, Ireland for 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Elizabeth" on 26th July 1818, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 10
Mr. James Curran, (b. 1800), aged 20, Irish convict who was convicted in Dublin, Ireland for 7 years for felony, transported aboard the "Dorothy" on 5th May 1820, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 11
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Curran 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:

Curran Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

William Curran, aged 23, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Jane Gifford" in 1842 12
Janet Curran, aged 19, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Jane Gifford" in 1842 12
Helen Curran, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Portland" in 1864
Mr. James Curran, (b. 1842), aged 23, British labourer travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Indian Empire" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 23rd July 1865 13
Mr. John Curran, (b. 1847), aged 18, British labourer travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Indian Empire" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 23rd July 1865 13
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Curran (post 1700) +

Sir Samuel Curran FRS, FRSE (1912-1998), British physicist and the first Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Strathclyde
Kevin Patrick Curran (1957-2016), American six-time Primetime Emmy Award winning television comedy writer, best known for his work on Late Night with David Letterman, Married...with Children, and The Simpsons
John Philpot Curran (1750-1817), Irish orator, politician and wit, he belonged to a family said to have originally come from Cumberland, where it bore the name of Curwen 14
Barbara A. Curran (1940-2022), American politician, attorney, and judge who served as a member of the New Jersey General Assembly (1974-1980) and New Jersey Superior Court (1993-2000)
Charles Courtney Curran (1861-1942), American painter
John Curran (b. 1960), American film director and screenwriter, winner of the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Direction
Francis Earl "Frank" Curran (1912-1992), American Democratic politician
Joseph Curran (1906-1981), American Union Leader
Lady Joan Strothers Curran (1916-1999), born Joan Elizabeth Strothers, Welsh scientist who played important roles in the development of radar and the atomic bomb during the Second World War, wife of Sir Samuel Curran
Peter Curran (b. 1962), Australian rules footballer
... (Another 6 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Curran family +

RMS Lusitania

Mr. Patrick Curran, Irish Fireman from Liverpool, England, who worked aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and died in the sinking 15

Victoria steamboat disaster

John Curran, Canadian passenger who was killed in the Victoria steamboat disaster when the boat capsized in 1881

Vimy Ridge

William Curran (1873-1917), Canadian teamster, Private in the 44th Battalion from Manitoba who died at Vimy Ridge June 1917

Sources +

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/
The order of Common Surnames in 1955 in Newfoundland retrieved on 20th October 2021 (retrieved from Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland by E.R. Seary corrected edition ISBN 0-7735-1782-0)
"Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 27th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/Boyd
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 2nd June 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/experiment
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/baring
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 3rd March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elizabeth
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 12th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dorothy
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Wikisource contributors. "Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900." Wikisource . Wikisource , 4 Jun. 2018. Web. 30 June 2020
Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/