O'Feeney History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• Ireland
• Scotland

Etymology of O'Feeney

The name O'Feeney originally appeared in Gaelic as Ó Fiannaidhe. This name, which was Ó Feinneadha in its earlier form, refers to a soldier. 1

Early Origins of the O'Feeney family

Early History of the O'Feeney family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our O'Feeney research. Another 98 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1509, 1541, 1551, 1640 and 1678 are included under the topic Early O'Feeney History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

O'Feeney Spelling Variations

Scribes and church officials, lacking today's standardized spelling rules, recorded names by how they were pronounced. This imprecise guide often led to the misleading result of one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname O'Feeney are preserved in documents of the family history. The various spellings of the name that were found include Finney, Feeney, Finnay, Finny, Fynnie, Fynney, Feenay, Feeny, Feaney, Feanay, Feany and many more.

Early Notables of the O'Feeney family

More information is included under the topic Early O'Feeney Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the O'Feeney family

The 18th century saw the slow yet steady emigration of Irish families to British North America and the United States. Those early Irish settlers that left their homeland were typically moderately well off: they were enticed by the promise of a sizable plot of land. However, by the 1840s, this pattern of immigration was gone: immigrants to North America were seeking refuge from the starvation and disease that the Great Potato Famine of that decade brought. The great numbers of Irish that arrived to the United States and the soon to be Canada were instrumental in their quick development as powerful industrial nations. An examination of early immigration and passenger lists uncovered many early immigrants bearing the name O'Feeney: Robert Finney, who purchased land in Virginia in 1716; John Finney landed in Maryland in 1774; Robert Finney settled in Virginia in 1716; Ellen Finney settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1840.