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Irish surname

Feely: Irish Surname History & Coat of Arms

Ó Fithcheallaigh (also Ó Fidhgheallaigh) · 'descendant of Fithcheallach' (chess-player)

Woulfe (1923) gives Feely as an anglicised form of Ó Fithcheallaigh, 'descendant of Fithcheallach' (chess-player), the name of a Corca Laoighdhe family in south-west Cork who were chiefs of Tuath O Fithcheallaigh near Baltimore. Maurice O'Fihely, Archbishop of Tuam, called 'Flos Mundi', belonged to this family. In 1890 Ireland's birth indexes held 41 entries including spelling varieties (28 spelled Feely), chiefly in Donegal and Roscommon.

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Coat of arms associated with the Feely surname
Irish formÓ Fithcheallaigh (also Ó Fidhgheallaigh)
Meaning'descendant of Fithcheallach' (chess-player)
CountiesCork, Donegal, Roscommon
Other spellings5
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Feely crest gifts

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Origin of the Feely name

Woulfe: Ó Fithcheallaigh was 'the name of a family of Corca Laoighdhe, in South-west Cork, where they were chiefs of Tuath O Fithcheallaigh, an extensive district in the neighbourhood of Baltimore.' Ó Fidhgheallaigh, also anglicised Feely and Feeley, is a variant. A separate Mac Fithcheallaigh (MacFeely) Woulfe calls 'very rare'.[1][2][3]

  1. 1506Maurice O'Fihely consecrated Archbishop of Tuam by Julius II.[7]
  2. 1513Four Masters record the death of Maurice O'Fihelly, Archbishop of Tuam.[6][7]
  3. 16th centuryWoulfe prints (Field) in brackets; Field as a form dates to the mid-16th century.[1]
  4. 189041 birth entries including spelling varieties (28 spelled Feely); chiefly Donegal and Roscommon.[4][8]

Where in Ireland

Co. CorkChiefs of Tuath O Fithcheallaigh, near Baltimore, in Corca Laoighdhe, south-west Cork.[1]
Co. DonegalOne of the two counties where Feely births were principally found in 1890.[4]
Co. RoscommonOne of the two counties where Feely births were principally found in 1890.[4]

Notable people named Feely

Maurice O'Fihely (Maurice de Portu)d. 1513Franciscan, born near Baltimore, Co. Cork; Archbishop of Tuam from 1506; called 'Flos Mundi' (Webb, Woulfe).[7][1]

Other spellings

Feeley · Fihelly · Fehily · Feehily · Fealy[2][5]

The Feely coat of arms

The design shown is a coat of arms associated with the Feely surname. In Irish and British heraldry a coat of arms is granted to one person and passes to their heirs; it does not belong to everyone who shares the surname. Many families still use the arms of their name as a symbol of their heritage.

Feely surname: questions

What does the surname Feely mean?

Woulfe gives Feely as a form of Ó Fithcheallaigh, 'descendant of Fithcheallach', which he glosses as 'chess-player'.[1]

Is Feely an Irish name?

Yes. Woulfe lists Feely as an anglicised form of Ó Fithcheallaigh, and Feely and Feeley under its variant Ó Fidhgheallaigh.[1][2]

Where in Ireland is the Feely name from?

Woulfe places the Ó Fithcheallaigh family in Corca Laoighdhe, south-west Cork, as chiefs of a district near Baltimore. In 1890 Feely births were found chiefly in Donegal and Roscommon.[1][4]

Who was 'Flos Mundi'?

Maurice O'Fihely, or Maurice de Portu, Archbishop of Tuam from 1506 to 1513. Woulfe says he belonged to the Ó Fithcheallaigh family; Webb quotes Harris's Ware that his learning and other endowments earned him the name 'Flos Mundi'.[1][7]

Sources

  1. Ó Fithcheallaigh — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/of/o-fithcheallaigh.php
  2. Ó Fidhgheallaigh — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/of/o-fidhgheallaigh.php
  3. Mac Fithcheallaigh — Irish Names and Surnames (Rev. Patrick Woulfe, 1923), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/names/macf/mac-fithcheallaigh.php
  4. Feely — Birth Indexes of 1890 — Special Report on Surnames in Ireland (Robert E. Matheson, 1909), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/matheson/report/births/feely.php
  5. Feely — Varieties and Synonymes of Surnames and Christian Names in Ireland (Robert E. Matheson, 1901), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/matheson/varieties/list/591.php
  6. Annals of the Four Masters (trans. John O'Donovan), 1513 (part 2) — CELT edition, CELT, University College Cork. celt.ucc.ie/published/T100005E/text002.html
  7. Maurice O'Fihely — A Compendium of Irish Biography (Alfred Webb, 1878), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/biography/MauriceOFihely.php
  8. Table Explanation — Birth Indexes of 1890 — Special Report on Surnames in Ireland (Robert E. Matheson, 1909), transcribed, LibraryIreland.com. libraryireland.com/matheson/report/births/table-explanation.php

Note: Matheson's 1890 figures for a surname include its spelling varieties (Matheson, Table Explanation).