O'Kelly ( ) is an Irish surname and the name of a number of distinct sept families in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. The most prominent of these is the O'Kelly sept who were the chiefly family of the Uí Maine in

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

. Another sept is that of the kingdom of

Brega Brega , also known as ''Mersa Brega'' or ''Marsa al-Brega'' ( , i.e. "Brega Seaport"), is a complex of several smaller towns, industry installations and education establishments situated in Libya on the Gulf of Sidra, the most southerly point of ...

, descended from the

Uí Néill The Uí Néill (; meaning "descendants of Niall") are Irish dynasties that claim descent from Niall Noígíallach (Niall of the Nine Hostages), a historical King of Tara who is believed to have died around c. 405. They are generally divided ...

. A more minor sept of O'Kelly was that descended from the Uí Máil; this sept is referred to in Irish as the Uí Ceallaig Cualann, in reference to the region of their origin, Cualu.

O'Kelly of Uí Maine

The O'Kelly sept of Uí Maine is descended from Cellach mac Fíonachta, who lived in the 9th century. The first to bear the surname was Tadhg Mór Ó Ceallaigh, a grandson of the former who was slain in the

Battle of Clontarf The Battle of Clontarf () took place on 23 April 1014 at Clontarf, near Dublin, on the east coast of Ireland. It pitted an army led by Brian Boru, High King of Ireland, against a Norse- Irish alliance comprising the forces of Sigtrygg Silkbea ...

fighting on behest of his ally

Brian Boru Brian Boru (; modern ; 23 April 1014) was the High King of Ireland from 1002 to 1014. He ended the domination of the High King of Ireland, High Kingship of Ireland by the Uí Néill, and is likely responsible for ending Vikings, Viking invasio ...

, king of

Munster Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...

and

high king of Ireland High King of Ireland ( ) was a royal title in Gaelic Ireland held by those who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over all of Ireland. The title was held by historical kings and was later sometimes assigned anachronously or to leg ...

. According to historian C. Thomas Cairney, the O'Kellys came from the tribe of Ui Maine who in turn were from the

Dumnonii The Dumnonii or Dumnones were a Britons (historical), British List of ancient Celtic peoples and tribes, tribe who inhabited Dumnonia, the area now known as Cornwall and Devon (and some areas of present-day Dorset and Somerset) in the further pa ...

Laigin The Laigin, modern spelling Laighin (), were a Gaelic population group of early Ireland. They gave their name to the Kingdom of Leinster, which in the medieval era was known in Irish as ''Cóiced Laigen'', meaning "Fifth/province of the Leinste ...

who were the third wave of

Celts The Celts ( , see Names of the Celts#Pronunciation, pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples ( ) were a collection of Indo-European languages, Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient Indo-European people, reached the apoge ...

to settle in Ireland during the first century BC. The earliest parts of the O'Kelly genealogy are contained in the Book of Hy Many, which was written in the latter half of the 14th century on behest of the then

archbishop of Tuam The Archbishop of Tuam ( ; ) is an Episcopal polity, archbishop which takes its name after the town of Tuam in County Galway, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The title was used by the Church of Ireland until 1839, and is still in use by the Cathol ...

, Muircheartach mac Pilib Ó Ceallaigh. Its compilation was the idea of William O'Kelly, a chief of Hy Many. The book is now kept in the

Royal Irish Academy The Royal Irish Academy (RIA; ), based in Dublin, is an academic body that promotes study in the natural sciences, arts, literature, and social sciences. It is Ireland's premier List of Irish learned societies, learned society and one of its le ...

in Dublin. The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

of the O'Kelly of Uí Maine is as follows: "azure, a tower triple-towered supported by two lions rampant argent as many chains descending from the battlements between the lions' legs or" The motto is, "Turris fortis mihi Deus", which translates to "God is a Strong Tower to Me" or alternatively "God is my Tower of Strength".

O'Kelly of Brega

The O'Kelly sept of

is descended from Cellach mac Congalach, a son of Congalach mac Conaing. This sept is considered one of the

Four Tribes of Tara The Four Tribes of Tara was an alliance of powerful clans that consisted of the O'Harts, O'Kelly's, O'Connolly, and the O'Regan. The princes of Tara were also styled princes of Brega, consisting of territory in the modern day counties Meath, Louth ...

O'Kelly of Cualu

The O'Kelly sept of Cualu is descended from Cellach Cualann mac Gerthidi, an Uí Máil king of Leinster in the late 7th through to the early 8th century.

Castles and structures of the O'Kelly

* Garbally Castle * Monivea Castle * Gallagh Castle * Clonbrock Castle * Galey Castle * Moyvannan Castle * St. Mary's Abbey, Duleek * Kilconnell Abbey * Aughrim Priory * Clontuskert Priory * Aghrane (Now Castlekelly)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:O Ceallaigh Kings of Uí Maine

O'Kelly of Uí Maine

O'Kelly of Brega

O'Kelly of Cualu

Castles and structures of the O'Kelly

See also

References