O'Shaughnessy — Irish Surname Origin & Meaning
Irish form: O Seachnasaigh
Meaning: 'descendant of Seachnasach' (seachnaim, to avoid or elude)
Traditional stronghold: Galway
Pronunciation: oh-SHAWK-ness-ee; Irish O Seachnasaigh: oh SHAKH-na-sig
History of the O'Shaughnessy name
O'Shaughnessy derives from O Seachnasaigh, built on the verb seachnaim, to avoid or elude, giving a name whose sense is something like 'the elusive one'. The family were lords of Kinelea in County Galway, holding territory around Gort near Lough Cutra, where they built and maintained several tower houses that still stand as evidence of their medieval power. The O'Shaughnessys retained a prominent local position into the seventeenth century before being swept up in the wider Cromwellian confiscations that dispossessed most remaining Gaelic landowners. The surname remains most strongly linked to County Galway today, and it became well known in literary circles through Victorian poetry bearing the name.
Variants: Shaughnessy · O'Shaugnessy
Famous bearers of the name
- Arthur O'Shaughnessy — Victorian-era poet, author of the ode 'We are the music makers'
Related names from the same part of Ireland: Kelly · Lynch · Connolly · Burke · Clarke · Hughes · Keane · Kenny