Ó Seachnasaigh, O'Shaughnessy, collectively Uí Sheachnasaigh, clan name Cinél nAedha na hEchtghe, is a family surname of Irish origin. The name is found primarily in

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

and

County Limerick County Limerick () is a western Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Reg ...

. Their name derives from Seachnasach mac Donnchadh, a 10th-century member of the Uí Fiachrach Aidhne, which the Ó Seachnasaigh were the senior clan of. The town of

Gort Gort ( or ) is a town of around 2,800 inhabitants in County Galway in the west of Ireland. Located near the border with County Clare, the town lies between the Burren and the Slieve Aughty and is served by the R458 road (Ireland), R458 and R460 ...

, Ireland, was the main residence of the family since at least the time of their ancestor, King Guaire Aidne mac Colmáin.

Naming conventions

History

Up until the late 17th century the Ó Seachnasaighs held the sub-district of Uí Fiachrach Aidhne known as

Cenél Áeda na hEchtge Cenél Áeda na hEchtge (also Cenél Áeda, Kenloth, Kinalethes, Kenealea, Kinelea) was a trícha cét (later a cantred, (a branch of the Uí Fiachrach Aidhne) and which was the original formation of the southern part of the barony (Ireland), bar ...

(modern Irish, Cinéal nAedha na hEchtghe), meaning "kindred of Aedh of the Slieve Aughty", which was also their clan name. Cinéal nAedha na hEchtghe / Kinelea consisted roughly of the

civil parishes In England, a civil parish is a type of Parish (administrative division), administrative parish used for Local government in England, local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishe ...

of Beagh, Kilmacduagh and Kiltartan and also parts of the civil parishes of Kibeacanty and Kilthomas. Their closest related kinsmen were the Ó Cathail / O Cahill clan, originally chiefs of eastern Kinelea, and the other clans of Uí Fhiachrach Aidhne the most prominent of which were the

Ó hEidhin ''Hynes'' is a surname, many examples of which originate as the anglicisation the Irish language, Irish name ''Ó hEidhin''. Etymology According to the ''Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland'', the modern name ''Hynes'' and i ...

/ O Hynes, Ó Cléirigh / O Cleary and Mac Giolla Cheallaigh / Kilkelly

sept A sept () is a division of a family, especially of a Scottish or Irish family. The term is used both in Scotland and in Ireland, where it may be translated as Irish , meaning "progeny" or "seed", and may indicate the descendants of a person ...

s. Up until the mid-17th century, the O'Hynes clan were still styled lords of Uí Fhiachrach Aidhne even though the Ó Seachnasaighs had become more powerful than their kinsmen during this century. In the 1690s, Captain Roger O'Shaughnessy had his lands confiscated for supporting the Jacobite cause against William of Orange, with the lands going to

Sir Thomas Prendergast, 1st Baronet Brigadier-General Sir Thomas Prendergast, 1st Baronet ( 1660 – 11 September 1709) was an Irish politician and soldier. Early life He was the son of Thomas Prendergast (d. 1725) of Croane, County Limerick, a small Catholic landowner, and Ele ...

. A legal battle raged on into the first half of the 18th century between the Ó Seachnasaigh and the Prendergasts, the family who were granted the lands, with the Ó Seachnasaigh eventually losing the case. The senior line of the Ó Seachnasaighs may have died out in the 1900s. O'Shaughnessy castles include Gort Castle, Fiddaun Castle, Ardamullivan Castle, Newtown Castle, Derryowen, which is just inside the

County Clare County Clare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern part of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council ...

border, Ballymulfaig, and a castle on one of the islands in Lough Cutra. According to a list naming the castles of County Galway and their owners, drawn up in 1574 by the English administration in Ireland, Islandmore Castle (now Thoor Ballylee) was listed as being owned by a John O'Shaughnessy. The last ''de facto'' Ó Seachnasaigh lord of Kinelea died at

after returning home from the

Battle of Aughrim The Battle of Aughrim () was the decisive battle of the Williamite War in Ireland. It was fought between the largely Irish Army (Kingdom of Ireland), Irish Jacobitism, Jacobite army loyal to James II of England, James II and the forces of Will ...

on 12 July 1691. Thousands of bearers of the name still survive both in their homeland and further abroad.

Notable O'Shaughnessys

Notable people with this surname include: * Andrew O'Shaughnessy (historian), historian * Andrew O'Shaughnessy (hurler) (born 1984), Irish hurler * Andrew O'Shaughnessy (politician) (1866–1956), Irish politician and Industrialist *

Arthur O'Shaughnessy Arthur William Edgar O'Shaughnessy (14 March 184430 January 1881) was a British poet and herpetologist. Of Irish descent, he was born in London. He is most remembered for his poem " Ode", from his 1874 collection ''Music and Moonlight'', which ...

(1844–1881), British poet and herpetologist * Barney O'Shaughnessy (1912–2007), Australian cricketer * Bob O'Shaughnessy (1921–1995), American basketball player *

Colleen O'Shaughnessey Colleen Ann O'Shaughnessey (born September 15, 1971) is an American voice actress. She is known for providing the voice to Jazz Fenton in '' Danny Phantom'' and Wasp in '' The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes''. Since 2010, O'Shaughnessey ha ...

(born 1971), American voice actress *

Daniel O'Shaughnessy Daniel Michael O'Shaughnessy (born 14 September 1994) is a Finnish professional Association football, footballer who plays for Veikkausliiga club HJK Helsinki, HJK and the Finland national football team, Finland national team as a defender (asso ...

(born 1994), Finnish footballer *

Darren O'Shaughnessy Darren O'Shaughnessy (; born 2 July 1972) is an Irish writer and novelist. He is best known for his young adult fiction series '' The Saga of Darren Shan'', ''The Demonata'', and '' Zom-B'', published under the pseudonym Darren Shan. The former ...

(born 1972), Irish author, nom de plume Darren Shan * Dudley O'Shaughnessy (born 1989), Boxer * Edward O'Shaughnessy (1860–1885), English cricketer * Eileen O'Shaughnessy (1905–1945), the first wife of George Orwell *

Fiona O'Shaughnessy Fiona O'Shaughnessy is an Irish film, stage, and television actress. She has appeared in ''Warlock III: The End of Innocence'' (1999), ''Goldfish Memory'' (2003), ''Alexander (2004 film), Alexander'' (2004), ''Until Death'' & ''Nightwatching'' ( ...

(born 1979), Irish actress * James O'Shaughnessy (born 1960), American author and investor * James O'Shaughnessy, Baron O'Shaughnessy (born 1976), British politician *

Margaret Heckler Margaret Mary Heckler (née O'Shaughnessy; June 21, 1931 – August 6, 2018) was an American politician and diplomat who represented in the United States House of Representatives from 1967 until 1983. A member of the Republican Party, she al ...

(1931–2018, Margaret Mary O'Shaughnessy), US lawyer and politician * Michael O'Shaughnessy (1864–1934), Irish civil engineer * Nicholas O'Shaughnessy, professor, author and political commentator * Patrick O'Shaughnessy (born 1993), Finnish footballer * Perri O'Shaughnessy, pen name of American authors * Roger O'Shaughnessy (died 1690), Captain in the Army of James II of England * Ryan O'Shaughnessy (born 1992), Irish singer-songwriter * Tam O'Shaughnessy (born 1952), American author and educator * Terrence J. O'Shaughnessy, general, United States Air Force * Tony O'Shaughnessy (1930–2006), Irish hurler * Thomas O'Shaughnessy (1850–1933), Recorder of Dublin Thomas Michael O'Shaughnessy Jr. Born 1956 * Sir Roger O'Shaughnessy of Kinelea (died 1569) * William O'Shaughnessy (1673–1744), Major-General and Chief of the Name *

William Brooke O'Shaughnessy Sir William Brooke O'Shaughnessy (from 1861 as William O'Shaughnessy Brooke) (October 1809 – 8 January 1889) was an Irish physician famous for his wide-ranging scientific work in pharmacology, chemistry, and inventions related to telegraphy an ...

(1809–1889), Irish toxicologist (introduced

medical cannabis Medical cannabis, medicinal cannabis or medical marijuana (MMJ) refers to cannabis products and cannabinoid molecules that are prescribed by physicians for their patients. The use of cannabis as medicine has a long history, but has not ...

in Europe), chemist and inventor (telegraph)

Notes

Some with relation to the O'Shaughnessy clan may spell it O'Shaughnessey or Shaughnessy.

References

* John O'Donovan,
The Descendants of the Last Earls of Desmond
, Ulster Journal of Archaeology, Volume 6, 1858. (contains passage regarding the knights O'Shaughnessy of Kinelea) * John O'Donovan
The Genealogies, Tribes, and Customs of Hy-Fiachrach
Dublin: Irish Archaeological Society. 1844. Pedigree of O'Shaughnessy, pp. 372–91 * Robert S. Rait
The Story of an Irish Property
Oxford: The University Press. 1908. Chapter III: The O'Shaughnessys, pp. 42–65

External links