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

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Sources

Garvey History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

Etymology of Garvey

What does the name Garvey mean?

Today's Irish surnames are underpinned by a multitude of rich histories. The name Garvey originally appeared in Gaelic as Ó Gairbhin, derived from the word "garbh," which means "rough." 1

Early Origins of the Garvey family

The surname Garvey was first found in County Tyrone (Irish: Tír Eoghain), the ancient territory of the O'Neills, now in the Province of Ulster, central Northern Ireland, where they held a family seat from very ancient times.

Early History of the Garvey family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Garvey research. Another 135 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1000, 1527, 1558, 1560 and 1595 are included under the topic Early Garvey History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Garvey Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Garvin, Garvey, Garwin, Garvine, Garven, Garvan, Garvy, Garvie, Garwen and many more.

Early Notables of the Garvey family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was

John Garvey (1527-1595), an Irish Protestant bishop of Kilmore and Archbishop of Armagh. He was the eldest son of John O'Garvey of Morisk, co. Mayo and was born in the county of Kilkenny. "He was educ...

Garvey Ranking

In the United States, the name Garvey is the 3,467^th most popular surname with an estimated 9,948 people with that name. 2

Garvey migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Garvey Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

James Garvey, who landed in Virginia in 1654 3
James Garvey who settled in Virginia in 1680

Garvey Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Matthew Garvey, who arrived in New York in 1801 3
Peter Garvey, aged 28, who arrived in New York in 1812 3
John Garvey, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1829 3
Edward C K Garvey, who landed in New York in 1839 3
Ellen Garvey, who settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1849
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Garvey migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Garvey Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Betty Garvey, aged 40, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1833 aboard the brig "Thomas Hanford" from Cork, Ireland
Thomas Garvey, who landed in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1843

Garvey migration to Australia +

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

Garvey Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Garvey, English convict who was convicted in Lincolnshire, (Lindsey), England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Aurora" on 18th June 1835, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 4
Mr. Patrick Garvey, (b. 1774), aged 62, British solider who was convicted in Cape of Good Hope, South Africa for life, transported aboard the "Eden" on 27th August 1836, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 5
James Garvey, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Constance" in 1849 6
James Garvey, aged 17, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1849 aboard the ship "Constance" 6
Catherine Garvey, aged 18, a servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1849 aboard the ship "Constance" 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Garvey 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:

Garvey Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Miss Janet Garvey, (b. 1832), aged 30, British dairymaid travelling from London aboard the ship "Echunga" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 24th December 1862 7
Richard Garvey, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Nimroud" in 1863
Rachel Garvey, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Nimroud" in 1863
John Garvey, aged 20, a farm labourer, who arrived in Hawkes Bay aboard the ship "Hudson" in 1879

Contemporary Notables of the name Garvey (post 1700) +

Arthur A. "Hec" Garvey (1900-1973), American professional football offensive lineman who played from 1922 to 1931
John Hugh Garvey (b. 1948), the 15th President of The Catholic University of America
Brian Garvey (b. 1961), American comic book artist who worked on many superhero comics for Marvel Comics from 1982-1988
Mike Garvey (b. 1962), American NASCAR Nextel Cup driver
Steven Patrick "Steve" Garvey (b. 1948), American Major League Baseball player, nicknamed "Mr. Clean"
Edward R. "Ed" Garvey, American lawyer, politician and activist
Cyndy Garvey (b. 1949), née Truhan, an American television personality and former wife of baseball player Steve Garvey
Jane Garvey (b. 1944), American head of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration from 1997 to 2002
Christopher B. Garvey, American politician, Candidate for Justice of New York Supreme Court 12th District, 2001, 2004 8
Christopher Garvey, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 1996 8
... (Another 43 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Garvey family +

Grover Shoe factory

Mr. J. Garvey (b. 1885), American employee of the Grover Shoe factory in Brockton, Massachusetts on 20th March 1905 when the boiler exploded and collapsed the wooden building; he survived 9

SS Atlantic

Mary Garvey, who was traveling aboard the ship "SS Atlantic" when it struck rocks off Nova Scotia in 1873, died in the sinking
W. Garvey, who was traveling aboard the ship "SS Atlantic" when it struck rocks off Nova Scotia in 1873, died in the sinking

The Garvey 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: Mirior Invictus
Motto Translation: Death before Defeat

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/
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 20th August 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/aurora
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 20th October 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eden
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) CONSTANCE 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Constance.htm
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 18) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
California Digital Newspaper from 21st March 1905 (retrieved on 5th August 2021.) Retrieved from https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SFC19050321.2.19&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1