Delaney Coat of Arms, Family Crest and Delaney Family History

Delaney Family History

The family history of the ancient name Delaney was found in the irishsurnames.com archives.

Surnames developed a wide number of variants over the centuries. Many different spelling variations of the same name can be traced back to a single original root. Also, when a bearer of a name emigrated from Ireland it was not uncommon that their original name would be incorrectly transcribed in the record books upon arrival at their new location. Some names have dozens of spelling variations. Some Surnames were also altered over the years based on how they sounded phonetically, by their sound, and depending on the prevailing political conditions it may have been advantageous to change a name from one language to another. This was especially so in Ireland where most Gaelic names were 'anglicized' at some stage.

Variants of the name Delaney include Delany, Delane and Dillane. This name is Dubhshlainte in Irish, Delaney being a phonetic rendering of this. An earlier anglicized form of this was O'Dulany. Felix O'Dulany, Bishop of Ossory, 1178-1202, built Saint Canices Cathedral in Kilkenny. This Irish sept originated in Coilluachtarach, now Upperwoods, at the foot of Slieve Bloom in Barrow, County Leix. In 1659 it appears as a principal Irish name in the four Baronies of Leix and in five in Kilkenny. It is in these Counties today that the name is most numerous. Michael Ronald Delaney was a champion athlete at the 1956 Olympic Games, and came from Dublin.The Delaney family crest (or coat of arms) came into existence many centuries ago. The process of creating these coats of arms began as early as the eleventh century although a form of Proto-Heraldry may have existed in some countries prior to this, including Ireland. The new more formalized art of Heraldry made it possible for families and even individual family members to have their very own family crest, coat of arms, including Delaney descendants.