11,938 Global SHAUGHNESSY Family Members

SHAUGHNESSY Family History

O'Shaughnessy & Shaughnessy Family History

Recorded as O'Shaughnessy and occasionally Shaughnessy, without the Gaelic prefix, this is a famous Irish surname. It has a special significance in a land where Christianity has such a hold. The O'Shaunghnessy clan are believed to be the direct descendants of the last pagan king of all Ireland, King Daithi, in the 10th century a.d. Certainly the clan were the most prominent sect in that part of the country known in ancient times as Ui Fiachra Aidhne, now County Galway, and it is said that they defeated their kinsmen the O'Cahills and the O'Clery's, to be the chiefs of the region.

The name is found primarily in County Galway and County Limerick.

O'Shaughnessy castles include Gort Castle, Fiddaun Castle, Ardamullivan Castle, Newtown Castle, Derryowen, which is just inside the County Clare 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.

Famous O'Shaughnessy People:

1. Andrew O'Shaughnessy (historian), historian
2. Barney O'Shaughnessy (1912–2007), Australian cricketer
3. Daniel O'Shaughnessy (born 1994), Finnish footballer
4. Edward O'Shaughnessy (1860–1885), English cricketer
5. James O'Shaughnessy (born 1960), American author and investor
6. Margaret Heckler (born 1931, Margaret Mary O'Shaughnessy), US lawyer and politician
7. Nicholas O'Shaughnessy, professor, author and political commentator
8. Patrick O'Shaughnessy (born 1993), Finnish footballer
9. Roger O'Shaughnessy (died 1690), Captain in the Army of James II of England
10. Tam O'Shaughnessy (born 1952), American author and educator
11. William O'Shaughnessy (1673–1744), Major-General and Chief of the Name