Donaghy Coat of Arms, Family Crest and Donaghy Family History

Donaghy Family History

The Donaghy ancient family history 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 Donaghy include McDonogh, McDonagh and Donaghey. These names are derived from the Gaelic MacDonnchadha, meaning 'son of Donagh'. The MacDonagh sept were known as the 'Lords of Duhallow', and were a branch of the MacCarthys. They were Chiefs in County Cork and held the great Castle of Kanturk. The other sept of the name were a branch of the great MacDermott clan whose Chiefs ruled in Counties Sligo and Roscommon. Noteworthy bearers of the name were John MacDonogh, 1779-1850, who was an Irish born American philanthropist and is best remembered for his efforts against slavery. Thomas McDonough, 1783-1825, was a naval officer who distinguished himself in the Battle of Plattsburg. In modern times the name Donaghy can be mostly found in Ulster and especially in Counties Tyrone and Derry.The Donaghy 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 Donaghy descendants.