| Glossary of Genealogical and Historical Terms Associated with Ireland Terms you might encounter when reading Irish history or researching Irish genealogy. General Terms Adventurer: Someone who contributed a sum of money to equip an army to help suppress the Rising of 1641. Adventurers were repaid by the grant of lands confiscated from the former Irish owners. Barony: A territorial division smaller than a county. A county can be made up of five to twenty baronies depending on its size. Brehon: Brehon Law and Brehon System refer to the Gaelic system of law that existed in Ireland which had been in existence since before the Norman invasion. Some aspects of this system remained in force until the seventeenth century. Co-arb: From the Irish comharba meaning the abbot who was heir to the founder of an abbey and whose family held the property from generation to generation, having the status of a lay lord, except that the individual claimed the privileges and excemptions which had been accorded to ecclesiastical property. Eponymous ancestor: The individual from whom the family name was taken. Fiant: Short for Fiant litterae patentes, which are warrents issued under the Great Seal and dealing with commissions, appointments to office, grants of English liberty and pardons. Galloglass: A heavily armed mercenary soldier usually of Scottish origin. The term comes from the Irish gallóglach. Kern: A lightly armed Irish soldier, from the Irish word ceithearnach, Locative name: A surname fromed from a physical feature or location of land not an actual place name. Ollav: Form the Irish word ollamh meaning professor or learned man. Palatines: Families from the Palatinate of the Rhine who settled in County Limerick in the eighteenth century. Pale, The: the area centered on Dublin which was under the full control of the British Crown. The size of the area varied greatly over time. Toponymic: A surname formed from a placename. Townland: A territorial sub-division of a parish, the size of which varied greatly but generally averaged 200 to 400 acres. The term is not related to city or town but comes from the Old English tun meaning an enclosure. Undertaker: An individual, usually English, who undertook a grant of land confiscated from the Irish on the condition that he would plant English or Scottish settlers on it. Wild Geese: Irish exiles who went to the European Continent during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Originally the term was applied only to those who became soldiers in the service of one of the continental countries. This term was later applied to their descendants as well. Location of Ancient Territories These ancient territories were in existence from prehistoric times to the break up of the Gaelic Order in the sixteenth century. Breffny (Bréifne): Cavan and west Lietrim Corca Laoidhe: South-west Cork Dalriada (Dál Riata): North Antrim Decies (Déise): West Waterford Desmond (Deasmhumhan): Kerry and much of Cork Iar Connacht: West Connacht (Connemara). Muskerry (Muscraidhe): North-west and central Cork Oriel (Orghialla): Counties Armagh, Monaghan and parts of Down, Louth and Fermanagh. Ormond (Urmhumhan): Much of County Kilkenny and north Tipperary Ossory (Osraighe): Part of Kilkenny and some adjacent areas. Thomond (Tuathmhumhan): Most of Clare and adjacent parts of Limerick and Tipperary. Tirconnell (Tír Chonaill): County Donegal Tirowen (Tír Eoghain): County Tyrone and adjacent part of Derry. Population Groups Cenél Conaill: The race name of the O’Gallaghers, O’Boyles and other families traditionally descended from Conall Gulban, son of Niall of the nine Hostages, Located in Tirconnell. Cenél Eoghain: The clan name of the O’Neills, etc. descended from Eoghan, son of Niall of the Nine Hostages, located in Tyrone and south Derry. Dál gCais: Also known as Dalcassians; includes the septs of Thomond. Eoghannacht: The clan name of the descendants of Eoghan, son of Oilioll Olum, to which many of the main families of south Munster belonged. Síol Anmchadha: A branch of the Uí Maine. Síol Muireadhaigh (Silmurray): The clan name of the O’Connors and other north Connacht septs. Uí Fiachrach: The northern and more important, i.e. Uí Fiachrach Muaidh, were located in north Mayo and Sligo: the other branch Aidhne occupied that part of south Galway covered by the diocese of Kilmacduagh. Uí Maine: Also known as Hy Many this population group was from the mid-Galway and south Roscommon area.
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