Welcome   The Athy Family      Athy Motto: To be led, not driven "This family is of great antiquity in Galway; tradition relates that one of the name erected the first stone house or castle within the town" “Andrew Bodkin, intermarried with Elis, daughter and co-heiress of John Dathi, (Athy,) lineally descended of the true stock of Daithi mac Fiochrach, from whom are also sprung O'Seachnasy of Gort, and many other nobles, not here mentioned.” James Hardiman (1782-1855) "The family name has been spelled in various ways, A-t-h-y, A-t-h-e-y, A-t-h-a, and A-t-h-i-e. The "A-t-h-e-y" is the usual way in which the American branch have spelled the family name. The family or more properly the sept had its origin in Ireland. Irish history shows that in the early days the name was spelled "D-a-i-t-h-i". The first mention of the name as spelled now, by the Irish branch of the family, was in th reign of Edward II, 1313." Judge Alexander Athey The Fourteen "Tribes of Galway" were ATHY, BLAKE, BODKIN, BROWNE, DARCY, DEANE, FONTE, FRENCH, JOYCE, KIRWAN, LYNCH, MARTIN, MORRIS and SKERRETT. All the tribes married almost exclusively with each other for hundreds of years, in some cases marrying cousins from different branches of their own family. The end result was that all fourteen could nearly be regarded as one large super-Tribe, so close were the bonds of kinship between them. Welcome to the Athy Family of Galway, a place to share knowledge of our Athy origins.  There are Fourteen Tribes of Galway and I hope individuals with an interest in any or all of these Tribes will join us. This is an interactive site.  I would like members to participate and share their knowledge as we delve into our proud heritage and come to know our ancestors and the world in which they lived. I will do all I can to research the genealogical origins and backgrounds of Tribe families, and provide a coat of arms whenever possible. Members who have other knowledge of the genealogy of these families are encouraged to share.  In this way, hopefully, we can learn from each other.      "Association Member" - 2003 - "Association Member" - 2004 -