Falvey
Encyclopedia
Falvey is a surname
which is an anglicisation of the name
Ó Fáilbhe: in the Irish language
Ó means "descendant" [of] and "fáilbhe" literally means "lively, pleasant, sprightly, merry, cheerful" or, according to another historian, "joker". Other anglicisations include O’Falvie, O’Falvy, O’Failie, O’Falvey, Falvey, Fealy and Fealey. The O’Falvey’s trace their descent to Conaire
, who was King of Ireland
at the beginning of the Christian era. The O’Falvey’s are recorded to have been powerful chief
s of Corcu Duibne
, specifically the Dingle Peninsula
of modern-era County Kerry
, the barony
of Corcaguiny. They were also Lord
s of Inveragh during the tenth century, and the hereditary admiral
s of Desmond
. The veracity of such claims is in their intent more than their detail, thus an "admiral" may well have been the leader of some boat
s, and a "lord" may have been a somewhat less imposing figure than a Victorian
English nobleman.
Some historical evidence appears to substantiate this particular claim, in the form of the following extract from The Viking Invasions of Ireland
.
The stem is said to begin with High King
Conaire Cóem in 165 and ends with the entry, Thomas O’Falvey of Taunton
, Massachusetts
with a son living in 1880. Documentation in Australia
is also speculative, for example that of the "Falvey Family History".
The O’Falveys eventually were dispossessed of their title
s and land
s by the Anglo-Norman
s, and migrated to Clare and remained in the vicinity for centuries. In common with other formerly great Catholic
and Gaelic
families, they lived in the less accessible parts of Ireland, where they were apparently content to remain in obscurity until the Catholic Emancipation
. Even after the upheaval of the Act for the Settlement of Ireland 1652
the O’Falveys still held considerable lands around Cahersiveen, some of which remained in their hands in an unbroken succession until, in quite recent times, the property of this branch of the family passed by alliance to the Morrogh-Bernards.
The Falvey lands that passed into the hands of the Morrogh-Bernard family are mentioned as a byline
in a history of Presentation Monastery
in Kerry
in which the expansion of the teaching monastery was effected by acquisition of "five acres of Falvey’s Inch through the generosity of the Morrough-Bernard family" ... perhaps suggesting once extensive land holdingsas documented for example in the Presentation Monastery files. The 1982 family history goes on to say that "in the records from the Irish Birth Indexes of 1890, a total of seventeen entries appear for the name of Falvey, sixteen of which were in the counties
of Cork
, County Clare
and Kerry. The name O’Falvey was borne by at least fourteen of the Irish saint
s", but then Irish saint
s were not uncommon. Through the centuries, Falveys have featured in various historical entries, despite the relative rarity of the name.
Other general historical references to Falveys may be found around the time of the Norman Conquest of England
, for which time the Ireland History in Maps shows the Ua Failbe, that is O’Falvey family, as a Lesser Sept located in the south west peninsula that forms part of Kerry. On the map for the pre-Norman period circa 1100, they are similarly listed in that location as a lesser dynastic
surname. A footnote (number 10) in an extract from a history of Desmond implies the competition that Falveys lived with to maintain influence in the region.
The 1540-1713 period of the Irish confessors and martyr
s has produced a list of those who suffered under the Irish penal enactments from 1537 according to an inquiry held in Dublin, which among gruesome descriptions of hanging
s and being cut to pieces, includes one Donchus O’Falvey, a priest
that is perhaps the Daniel Falvey, friar
, remanded at Kerry Lent Assizes, 1703. By the late seventeenth century, records of officers
in King James
' army include at least four Falvey’s, a Captain
Denis Falvey, two lieutenant
s Falvey, one of which was named Dermott, and an ensign
Hugh Falvey.
The entry for Falvey families in Kerry, implies an interesting history that must have been common to many families. While it includes a chief, a grant to use English law and a later repeal of the grant, distinguished death in battle
, and a Counsellor of apparent note, it also contains many names without note and a lowly tanner. While it may be tempting to ignore the ignominious and to claim the Falvey crown and heritage, most were apparently peasants. Surnames in the sense we understand them today were introduced in Ireland from about the tenth century, and are known to have been commonplace by the twelfth. This event alone would not have assisted genealogical
research, but as the Irish system of inheritance of name and land was patronymic, some names appear in older records. The "O" in O’Falvey was simply the English expression of the Gaelic ‘ua’ meaning ‘from’, and seems to have been dropped from many Irish names during times of persecution. Considering the integration of the Falveys with the Anglo-Saxon and Protestant culture of the modern West, and the benefits they enjoy from such integration as for many others, the ancestral shedding of the ‘O’ might now seem to have been prescient.
Today, the name Falvey seems rare. However, the variants of anglicised
spellings of the name means that for a Falvey, in addition to the obvious alternative spellings and retention of prefix ‘O’, families bearing such names as Fallie, Fealy and Fealey may be as closely related as any unknown Falvey. Family Heritage International offers estimates of the Falvey population in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain and Northern Ireland, although as their listing of Falvey addresses is inevitably deficient.
For Australia
, search results of the National Archives of Ireland
includes 11 Falveys for the years 1836-1856, eight of whom were transported for such crimes as stealing
a cow or other larceny
. The destination of transportees is not noted.
The main campus library at Villanova University
is named Falvey Memorial Library, in remembrance of Rev. Daniel Falvey, an Augustinian priest who dedicated over half his life as librarian for the university.
Surname
A surname is a name added to a given name and is part of a personal name. In many cases, a surname is a family name. Many dictionaries define "surname" as a synonym of "family name"...
which is an anglicisation of the name
Name
A name is a word or term used for identification. Names can identify a class or category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given context. A personal name identifies a specific unique and identifiable individual person, and may or may not include a middle name...
Ó Fáilbhe: in the Irish language
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
Ó means "descendant" [of] and "fáilbhe" literally means "lively, pleasant, sprightly, merry, cheerful" or, according to another historian, "joker". Other anglicisations include O’Falvie, O’Falvy, O’Failie, O’Falvey, Falvey, Fealy and Fealey. The O’Falvey’s trace their descent to Conaire
Conaire
Conaire Cóem , son of Mug Láma, a descendant of Conaire Mór and Dedu mac Sin, was, according to medieval Irish legend and historical tradition, a High King of Ireland. He came to power on the death of his father-in-law Conn Cétchathach, and ruled for seven or eight years, at the end of which he was...
, who was King of Ireland
King of Ireland
A monarchical polity has existed in Ireland during three periods of its history, finally ending in 1801. The designation King of Ireland and Queen of Ireland was used during these periods...
at the beginning of the Christian era. The O’Falvey’s are recorded to have been powerful chief
Tribal chief
A tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ...
s of Corcu Duibne
Corcu Duibne
The Corcu Duibne was a notable kingdom in prehistoric and medieval County Kerry, Ireland which included the Dingle Peninsula, the Iveragh Peninsula and connecting lands...
, specifically the Dingle Peninsula
Dingle Peninsula
The Dingle Peninsula is the northernmost of the major peninsulae in County Kerry. Its ends beyond the town of Dingle at Dunmore Head, the westernmost point of Ireland.-Name:...
of modern-era County Kerry
County Kerry
Kerry means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was Ciar, son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective...
, the barony
Barony (Ireland)
In Ireland, a barony is a historical subdivision of a county. They were created, like the counties, in the centuries after the Norman invasion, and were analogous to the hundreds into which the counties of England were divided. In early use they were also called cantreds...
of Corcaguiny. They were also Lord
Lord
Lord is a title with various meanings. It can denote a prince or a feudal superior . The title today is mostly used in connection with the peerage of the United Kingdom or its predecessor countries, although some users of the title do not themselves hold peerages, and use it 'by courtesy'...
s of Inveragh during the tenth century, and the hereditary admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
s of Desmond
County Desmond
The Kingdom of Desmond was an historic kingdom located on the southwestern coast of Ireland. The name is Gaelic in origin - Deas-Mhumhain - which means South Munster...
. The veracity of such claims is in their intent more than their detail, thus an "admiral" may well have been the leader of some boat
Boat
A boat is a watercraft of any size designed to float or plane, to provide passage across water. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas. However, boats such as the whaleboat were designed to be operated from a ship in an offshore environment. In naval terms, a boat is a...
s, and a "lord" may have been a somewhat less imposing figure than a Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
English nobleman.
Some historical evidence appears to substantiate this particular claim, in the form of the following extract from The Viking Invasions of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
.
- The second armyArmyAn army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
was actually a navyNavyA navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
consisting of the Ernans of Desmond led by their admiral Falvey the Fair (Falbi Fionn) ... When Sitric learned of the advancing army, he took his men aboard their ships and tied Callaghan to the mast. He then sailed out and waited for the Irish. The Irish fleet shot at the VikingVikingThe term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
s with all speed. Admiral Falvey attacked the lead Viking ship which carried Sitric and the tied Callaghan. Ramming the Viking vessel, he jumped aboard with two swords, one in each hand dueling the Viking warriors. Falvey cut loose Callaghan and together they fought their way out. As Callaghan escaped, Falvey was cut down and died aboard the Viking ship. Many men drowned in the battle as they were wearing such heavy armor. During the sea battle, the Cianachts and other Munstermen were forced to watch from the shore, unable to assist their navy. However, the Ernans destroyed the Vikings, sending them racing back to Norway.
The stem is said to begin with High King
High King of Ireland
The High Kings of Ireland were sometimes historical and sometimes legendary figures who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over the whole of Ireland. Medieval and early modern Irish literature portrays an almost unbroken sequence of High Kings, ruling from Tara over a hierarchy of...
Conaire Cóem in 165 and ends with the entry, Thomas O’Falvey of Taunton
Taunton, Massachusetts
Taunton is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the seat of Bristol County and the hub of the Greater Taunton Area. The city is located south of Boston, east of Providence, north of Fall River and west of Plymouth. The City of Taunton is situated on the Taunton River...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
with a son living in 1880. Documentation in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
is also speculative, for example that of the "Falvey Family History".
The O’Falveys eventually were dispossessed of their title
Title
A title is a prefix or suffix added to someone's name to signify either veneration, an official position or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may even be inserted between a first and last name...
s and land
Real property
In English Common Law, real property, real estate, realty, or immovable property is any subset of land that has been legally defined and the improvements to it made by human efforts: any buildings, machinery, wells, dams, ponds, mines, canals, roads, various property rights, and so forth...
s by the Anglo-Norman
Anglo-Norman
The Anglo-Normans were mainly the descendants of the Normans who ruled England following the Norman conquest by William the Conqueror in 1066. A small number of Normans were already settled in England prior to the conquest...
s, and migrated to Clare and remained in the vicinity for centuries. In common with other formerly great Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
and Gaelic
Gaels
The Gaels or Goidels are speakers of one of the Goidelic Celtic languages: Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx. Goidelic speech originated in Ireland and subsequently spread to western and northern Scotland and the Isle of Man....
families, they lived in the less accessible parts of Ireland, where they were apparently content to remain in obscurity until the Catholic Emancipation
Catholic Emancipation
Catholic emancipation or Catholic relief was a process in Great Britain and Ireland in the late 18th century and early 19th century which involved reducing and removing many of the restrictions on Roman Catholics which had been introduced by the Act of Uniformity, the Test Acts and the penal laws...
. Even after the upheaval of the Act for the Settlement of Ireland 1652
Act for the Settlement of Ireland 1652
The Act for the Settlement of Ireland imposed penalties including death and land confiscation against participants and bystanders of the Irish Rebellion of 1641 and subsequent unrest.-Background:...
the O’Falveys still held considerable lands around Cahersiveen, some of which remained in their hands in an unbroken succession until, in quite recent times, the property of this branch of the family passed by alliance to the Morrogh-Bernards.
The Falvey lands that passed into the hands of the Morrogh-Bernard family are mentioned as a byline
Byline
The byline on a newspaper or magazine article gives the name, and often the position, of the writer of the article. Bylines are traditionally placed between the headline and the text of the article, although some magazines place bylines at the bottom of the page, to leave more room for graphical...
in a history of Presentation Monastery
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
in Kerry
County Kerry
Kerry means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was Ciar, son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective...
in which the expansion of the teaching monastery was effected by acquisition of "five acres of Falvey’s Inch through the generosity of the Morrough-Bernard family" ... perhaps suggesting once extensive land holdingsas documented for example in the Presentation Monastery files. The 1982 family history goes on to say that "in the records from the Irish Birth Indexes of 1890, a total of seventeen entries appear for the name of Falvey, sixteen of which were in the counties
County
A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain...
of Cork
County Cork
County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...
, County Clare
County Clare
-History:There was a Neolithic civilisation in the Clare area — the name of the peoples is unknown, but the Prehistoric peoples left evidence behind in the form of ancient dolmen; single-chamber megalithic tombs, usually consisting of three or more upright stones...
and Kerry. The name O’Falvey was borne by at least fourteen of the Irish saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
s", but then Irish saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
s were not uncommon. Through the centuries, Falveys have featured in various historical entries, despite the relative rarity of the name.
Other general historical references to Falveys may be found around the time of the Norman Conquest of England
Norman conquest of England
The Norman conquest of England began on 28 September 1066 with the invasion of England by William, Duke of Normandy. William became known as William the Conqueror after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, defeating King Harold II of England...
, for which time the Ireland History in Maps shows the Ua Failbe, that is O’Falvey family, as a Lesser Sept located in the south west peninsula that forms part of Kerry. On the map for the pre-Norman period circa 1100, they are similarly listed in that location as a lesser dynastic
Dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers considered members of the same family. Historians traditionally consider many sovereign states' history within a framework of successive dynasties, e.g., China, Ancient Egypt and the Persian Empire...
surname. A footnote (number 10) in an extract from a history of Desmond implies the competition that Falveys lived with to maintain influence in the region.
The 1540-1713 period of the Irish confessors and martyr
Martyr
A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
s has produced a list of those who suffered under the Irish penal enactments from 1537 according to an inquiry held in Dublin, which among gruesome descriptions of hanging
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
s and being cut to pieces, includes one Donchus O’Falvey, a priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
that is perhaps the Daniel Falvey, friar
Friar
A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders.-Friars and monks:...
, remanded at Kerry Lent Assizes, 1703. By the late seventeenth century, records of officers
Officer (armed forces)
An officer is a member of an armed force or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. Commissioned officers derive authority directly from a sovereign power and, as such, hold a commission charging them with the duties and responsibilities of a specific office or position...
in King James
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
' army include at least four Falvey’s, a Captain
Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)
Captain is a junior officer rank of the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above Lieutenant and below Major and has a NATO ranking code of OF-2. The rank is equivalent to a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and to a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force...
Denis Falvey, two lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
s Falvey, one of which was named Dermott, and an ensign
Ensign (rank)
Ensign is a junior rank of a commissioned officer in the armed forces of some countries, normally in the infantry or navy. As the junior officer in an infantry regiment was traditionally the carrier of the ensign flag, the rank itself acquired the name....
Hugh Falvey.
The entry for Falvey families in Kerry, implies an interesting history that must have been common to many families. While it includes a chief, a grant to use English law and a later repeal of the grant, distinguished death in battle
Battle
Generally, a battle is a conceptual component in the hierarchy of combat in warfare between two or more armed forces, or combatants. In a battle, each combatant will seek to defeat the others, with defeat determined by the conditions of a military campaign...
, and a Counsellor of apparent note, it also contains many names without note and a lowly tanner. While it may be tempting to ignore the ignominious and to claim the Falvey crown and heritage, most were apparently peasants. Surnames in the sense we understand them today were introduced in Ireland from about the tenth century, and are known to have been commonplace by the twelfth. This event alone would not have assisted genealogical
Genealogy
Genealogy is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history. Genealogists use oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members...
research, but as the Irish system of inheritance of name and land was patronymic, some names appear in older records. The "O" in O’Falvey was simply the English expression of the Gaelic ‘ua’ meaning ‘from’, and seems to have been dropped from many Irish names during times of persecution. Considering the integration of the Falveys with the Anglo-Saxon and Protestant culture of the modern West, and the benefits they enjoy from such integration as for many others, the ancestral shedding of the ‘O’ might now seem to have been prescient.
Today, the name Falvey seems rare. However, the variants of anglicised
Anglicism
An Anglicism, as most often defined, is a word borrowed from English into another language. "Anglicism" also describes English syntax, grammar, meaning, and structure used in another language with varying degrees of corruption.-Anglicisms in Chinese:...
spellings of the name means that for a Falvey, in addition to the obvious alternative spellings and retention of prefix ‘O’, families bearing such names as Fallie, Fealy and Fealey may be as closely related as any unknown Falvey. Family Heritage International offers estimates of the Falvey population in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain and Northern Ireland, although as their listing of Falvey addresses is inevitably deficient.
For Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, search results of the National Archives of Ireland
National Archives of Ireland
The National Archives of Ireland is the official repository for the state records of the Republic of Ireland. Established by the National Archives Act 1986, it came into existence in 1988, taking over the functions of the State Paper Office and the Public Record Office of Ireland. The National...
includes 11 Falveys for the years 1836-1856, eight of whom were transported for such crimes as stealing
Theft
In common usage, theft is the illegal taking of another person's property without that person's permission or consent. The word is also used as an informal shorthand term for some crimes against property, such as burglary, embezzlement, larceny, looting, robbery, shoplifting and fraud...
a cow or other larceny
Larceny
Larceny is a crime involving the wrongful acquisition of the personal property of another person. It was an offence under the common law of England and became an offence in jurisdictions which incorporated the common law of England into their own law. It has been abolished in England and Wales,...
. The destination of transportees is not noted.
The main campus library at Villanova University
Villanova University
Villanova University is a private university located in Radnor Township, a suburb northwest of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States...
is named Falvey Memorial Library, in remembrance of Rev. Daniel Falvey, an Augustinian priest who dedicated over half his life as librarian for the university.