why are irish surnames not more common in america?

cormacocomhrai

Interesting that one branch of the Gilmores originated in Co. Down. The Gilmores, Protestant IRA men from Dublin in the period 1920s-1940s, were originally from Portadown which isn't exactly a million miles away. I wonder were they part of a branch of that family.

pinkmanemily

Dear Cormacocomhrai, Just found your e-mail on the info of Pinkman/ Maguire name change. I have been trying for years to connect both names. I started out with info from a Frank Pinkman, a school teacher from Canada, in the 1980's. He is either living back in England or has passed away. I could send this info to you if you need it. He thought that the group I'am from, Ak-Mo line of Pinkman's, was from the 1812 James Pinkman in Canada, at first I though it was the 1845 James Pinkman that came from Ireland to Ak, but now I'am going back to Frank Pinkman records with his notes of James Pinkman, 1812 Canada. Do you have ANY info that might help me in what direction to go, search. Frank Pinkman was born in Ireland and did attent school in Ireland. He work on the USA Pinkman's for years. I do thank him for all of his hard work, time and sharing. Thank you, Darlena Pinkman Baldwin -email- emily005@centurytel.net

cormacocomhrai

Hi Darlena, check your email

Lynne Connelly

cormacocomhrai wrote: »

dave2pvd wrote: »

Also keep in mind that the figures are somewhat skewed. For whatever reason, so many people in the US claim Irish ancestry, often despite having family names on both parents' sides that are not remotely Irish.

Even in Ireland names that look Anglo are often Gaelic in origin. Mistranslation by state officials etc. or a desire to appear more respectable led to the origins of a lot of names obscuring. This happened all over the country.
In Galway Judge is the same name as Brehony. In Tipperary Greene is the same name as Fahy. You also have names like Canavan became Whitehead, Gormally became Blueman, Maguire became Pinkman, McGowan became Smith. As far as I know a branch of the O'Neills became Johnsons, Ó Dorchaí became D'Arcy, Ó Coileáin became Collins. There are a hundred examples of that kind of thing.
My own name Ó Comhraí has been anglicised as Corry (the version in my family) but also Curry, O'Curry and Corry. A couple of generations in America and people would be told categorically that their ancestry must have been Scottish with the name Corry.
Is mise
Cormac Ó Comhraí

Hi my GGG Grandmother was a Catherine Pinkman. I am interested in the name change from Maguire to Pinkman. Do you have any further info on this?

Thanks.

cormacocomhrai

Lynne Connelly wrote: »

Hi my GGG Grandmother was a Catherine Pinkman. I am interested in the name change from Maguire to Pinkman. Do you have any further info on this?

Thanks.

Hi Lynne,
I came across it in a book written by John A. Pinkman, an English born member of the IRA. The name of the book is "Legion of the Vanguard" other than that I've no other information. Sorry.

Lynne Connelly

Ahh, thanks for getting back so quickly. As luck would have it I've just ordered a second hand copy of that book.

Lynne

gobnaitolunacy

true wrote: »

And Henry Ford, arguably the most famous car-maker in the western world, came from Cork.

His family came from Cork, not Henry himself.

Apparantly, he returned to the family homestead in Ballinascarthy (think sometime around 1912/13 to check out if he could purchase the former family farm, then owned by a couple of batchelor farmers. The local parish priest advised the lads to hold out for more cash, but Henry simply kept his money and returned to the states with the hearthstone of the farmhouse.

gobnaitolunacy

dave2pvd wrote: »

Consider just how many nationalities Anglicized their names. Brown from BROWNE, BRAUN, BROUN, BRUEN, BRUUN, BRUAN, BRUN, BRUENE, BROHN, etc. See here.

A lot of Germanic sounding names were anglicized during WW1 and Sauerkraut was transformed into 'Liberty Cabbage' (shades of that in 'French Fries/Freedom Fries' in our own time.:D)

Interesting to note from the stats that Hispanic names are overtaking the 'English' names.

tac foley

Apropos the Anglicising of Irish names, some friends of ours in WA are called Kingston. Their ancestor had arrived from Ireland in the 1870's and had originally been from Dún Laoghaire - then called Kingstown, I bleeve.

The family name prior to that was totally forgotten, because on his arrival at Ellis Island immigration centre he started from scratch in the New World with a new name.

tac

gobnaitolunacy

Should also have mentioned that a fair percentage of what seem like English surnames, may in fact be carried by African-Americans.

tac foley

gobnaitolunacy wrote: »

Should also have mentioned that a fair percentage of what seem like English surnames, may in fact be carried by African-Americans.

This is a reminder that their predecessors took their surname from their white owners, a fact that explains the preponderance of Scottish surnames among the black population of Belize, formerly known as British Guyana.

tac

Dr.Tank Adams

They've always seem reasonably common to me, if often horribly misspelled. I suppose it could be down to the fact that many of the people who report "Irish" ancestry are actually Ulster-Scots.

ONeill2013

in my family tree there seems to be a pattern that the people who emigrated to Pennsylvania (mostly women) married other irishmen and their children married people with other irish surnames, this is compared to others who emigrated to Canada and married people with English surnames.