(O) Kelly, Queally, (O)Kiely

(O)Kelly;

Variant Spelling; Kealy, Keeling, Keely, Keilly, Kiely, Kily, Queally, (O)Kiely.

Kelly is the second most common name in the country. It is a name that frequently dropped the O prefix during time of the English occupation but today it is resuming the prefix.

The name Kelly does not seem to descend from a single ancestor but came into being independently in at least seven widely separated districts. In Irish the name is O Ceallaigh meaning descendant of Ceallach.

The most enduring of the Kelly septs is that of Hy Many in Co. Galway and southern Co. Roscommon. Up to the thirteenth century the O’Kellys of Breagh, Co. Meath were as important as those of Hy Many but they were dispersed by the Anglo-Norman invasion.

North Connacth Kellys are more apt to be from the Templeboy, Co. Sligo sept rather than that of Hy Many. The Dublin Kellys are either from a North Wicklow branch of the family or from migrants from Kelly septs who made their way to the city.

Some of the O’Kellys of Kilkenny and Tipperary retain O’Kealy, an older form of the name, which in Waterford becomes Queally.

The oldest and most important branch of the Kellys is that of Hy Many and their coat of arms is the one represented here.

A minor branch of the O’Kellys of east Connacht was known as MacKelly.

In 1518 the O’Kellys were one of the dangerous septs named by the Corporation of Galway, ten of the name from the counties Dublin, Kildare and Meath were attainted in 1642 and 25 of the Hy Many sept were attainted in1691. This is firm evidence of the loyalty of the O’Kellys.

Patrick O’Kelly (1754-1835) was a poet and eccentric, James O’Kelly (1845-1916) was a war correspondent on three continents and a Parnellite Member of Parliament. Mr. Sean T. O’Kelly was the president of Ireland.

In the US, Eugene Kelly (1808-1894) was a philanthropist and banker; William Kelly (1811-1988) was an inventor and William Kelly (1857-1894) a baseball idol. Colonel Patrick Kelly was commander of the Irish brigade at Gettysburg.

The motto in the Kelly coat of arms is 'Turnis Fortis Mihi Deus' which may be translated as 'God Is My Strong Fortress'.

Coat of Arms