Surname Hannelly - Meaning and Origin
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Hannelly: What does the surname Hannelly mean?
The last name Hannelly is an Irish surname of both Gaelic and English origin. It is derived from the Gaelic O hAghnaill, a personal name composed of the elements agh "youth" and naill "valor." The surname may also have been an Anglicized form of the Gaelic Ó hAinbhil, a personal name derived from ainbhle, which means "noble."
Bonnie Finney** of the Institute of Name-Studies in Belfast, states that the surname Hannelly is rarely found in Northern Ireland and often appears in the form O'Hanley. The surname is more commonly found in the province of Leinster in the Republic of Ireland. The popular English variant of the surname is Hanley, and is believed to originally derive from the Norman French Hanly. This charm ‘le hanly': is mentioned as located in Meath in 1386 and in Connacht in 1543.
The Hannelly surname is also found along the Irish coast, including in the counties of Mayo, Clare, Limerick, and Kerry. The family held a seat as a Principality in the barony of Fermoy in county Cork for centuries.
The name Hannelly, often spelled as Hanley or O'Hanley, is believed by many to either refer to an Irish family of ambitious and formidable warriors, or to an honorable family of nobility. Despite its limited presence in Northern Ireland, the Hannelly surname is still widely found throughout Ireland.
Order DNA origin analysisHannelly: Where does the name Hannelly come from?
The last name Hannelly is most common today in Ireland, where it is especially prevalent in the provinces of Connacht and Munster. The earliest record of the surname is for Edward Halfnelay, who purchased land on the south side of Dublin in 1259. It is believed that the original form of the name emerged from O hAinidhille/O hAnnaidhille, a surname that stemmed from a personal name said to be derived from the Irish words "ainiodh" (sheer cliff) and "aille" (noble).
Over the centuries, variations of the name spread throughout Ireland and other parts of Europe as Hannelly variants and other spellings such as Hannaly, Hannally, Handley, Handly, and Handlee.
The name has been spread across the globe due to emigration and now is seen in countries around the world, including the United States, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom. It is most popular in the United States, where it ranks around 13,000 and is especially popular in the states of California, New York, Illinois, Texas, and Pennsylvania.
In Ireland today, it is estimated that around 5,500 people carry the last name Hannelly, with counties such as Galway, Roscommon, and Cork being the most popular.
Variations of the surname Hannelly
The surname Hannelly has a number of variants, spelling modifications, and alternate surnames of the same origin. The most common variants are Heneally, Henneally, Henelly, Hennely, Hanely, Hanly, and Hanley.
The name has direct roots in both the Irish and English language, and researching the spelling variations in each language reveals the wide range of names with the same origin.
In Ireland, Hannelly or Henally is likely an anglicization of the old Gaelic Irish surname, O'hAinghusa, stemming from the very old phrase, “O’hAingheanUisce” meaning “descendant of Aingheanus." This surname eventually became variously spelled such as Hen/Han/Hannely, O'Han/O'Hene/O'Hennelly, and O'Henely/O'Heneally. The Gaelic spelling variant of these names is O'hAingheanUisce with a slight variation of O'hEanUisce.
In England, the surname Hannelly is likely an anglicized form of the German name Hanel or Onel, which were the German words for “Hawk” and “Elk” respectively. The alternate spellings and surnames in England would be Honell, Hanoel, Hanoele, O'Hannelly, O'Honally, Honall, or Hanel.
It is difficult to trace the exact history of a surname with such a variety of variants, however, these are the most common variants, spellings, and alternate surnames of the same origin for the surname Hannelly.
Famous people with the name Hannelly
- John J. Hannelly: American football player and assistant coach
- Mark Hannelly: Welsh rugby union player
- Danny Hannelly: American football linebacker
- Johanna Hannelly: British actress and writer
- Hannely Willis: American professional basketball player
- Tommy Hannelly: Irish darts player
- Jack Hannelly: British professional cyclist
- Larry Hannelly: American actor
- Steven Hannelly: Australian rugby league player
- Sarah Hannelly: Irish singer-songwriter and artist