O’Leary
Ó Laoghaire · descendant of Laoghaire
O’Leary is Ó Laoghaire in Irish, said oh LAY-ra, and means descendant of Laoghaire.
Laoghaire means calf-keeper, and is the name of the high king who was on the throne when Patrick arrived. The Cork family gave their name to Inchigeelagh, Inse Geimhleach, in the Lee valley.
How it changes
- A man: Ó Laoghaire
- His daughter: Ní Laoghaire
- A woman who married into it: Bean Uí Laoghaire
- The family together: Uí Laoghaire
Where it comes from
west Cork
Also spelt
O’Leary, Leary, Lary
A name, not a pedigree
This is where the name came from, which is not the same as where you came from. Names were translated, anglicised, taken on by tenants and neighbours, and carried in by settlers who were no relation to the family that started them. To follow your own line, the 1901 and 1911 censuses are free and searchable, and give the county each person was born in.