Cooney — Irish Surname Origin & Meaning
Irish form: O Cuana
Meaning: 'descendant of Cuana, meaning elegant or comely'
Traditional stronghold: Clare, Galway
Pronunciation: KOO-nee; Irish O Cuana: oh KOO-nuh
History of the Cooney name
O Cuana, from a personal name meaning 'elegant' or 'graceful', named a sept centred in east Galway and adjoining parts of Clare and Roscommon within Connacht. The family did not achieve major dynastic power but persisted as a stable landholding group through the medieval period in its home area. As with many Connacht names, the O prefix was dropped in the main during the 18th and 19th centuries, leaving the simple anglicised form Cooney, which is common today particularly in Galway, Clare and the west of Ireland. The name travelled extensively with emigration, especially to the United States, where it remains a recognisable Irish-American surname among descendants of 19th- and 20th-century emigrants.
Variants: O'Cooney · Cooney (Coyne, distinct)
Famous bearers of the name
- Joan Cooney — American television producer, co-founder of the Children's Television Workshop (Sesame Street), of Irish descent
- Paddy Cooney — Irish Fine Gael politician and government minister
- Gerry Cooney — American heavyweight boxer of Irish descent
- Don Cooney — Irish city councillor and activist
Related names from the same part of Ireland: Kelly · O'Brien · Kennedy · Lynch · Quinn · Connolly · Burke · Clarke