Tag Archives for " Downey "
Irish Nicknames and your Irish Surname
Irish nicknames often make their way into surnames. Many people have a “nickname” that may be based on a personality trait, their appearance, or just a term of family endearment. In this letter we will see how nicknames in Ireland included one’s surname, and evolved into whole new surnames over time. Céad Míle Fáilte – […]
Continue readingSheeps Head Peninsula and Bantry on the Wild Atlantic Way
We left Mizen Head to travel north on the next leg of our journey around Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way (if you want to see all about our last leg, you can catch up here). This leg takes us from the village of Durrus, out along the south of the Sheep’s Head Peninsula to the lighthouse […]
Continue readingThe Tribes of Ireland – Ireland at the Birth of Your Irish Surname.
In last week’s newsletter we introduced Turlough O’Connor – High King of Ireland up to 1156. If Turlough was in the habit of reading maps back at that time, he might look at his kingdoms through the lens of this map – showing the major Tribes of Ireland at his time. Now, let’s take a […]
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