Gaelic learned family

McInerney

Mac an Airchinnigh

Also: MacInerney

“son of the erenagh — the hereditary steward of church lands”

🏔 Clare · An Clár 🏔 Limerick · Luimneach Source: Wikipedia ↗

The sept's historic heartland, highlighted. People moved — a name can be found far from home.

The story

A job title fossilised into a surname: the family were hereditary erenaghs in Thomond, managing church estates by the Fergus. Every McInerney is, etymologically, in church administration.

Their world Around 1450 — The Gaelic Resurgence. Plague, absentee landlords and Gaelic recovery shrink English Ireland to a fortified strip around Dublin.

See them on the atlas ↗

What the name is made of

Mac an Airchinnigh
Mac — son of (Mc is the same word, contracted)
an Airchinnigh — the ancestor, trade or place the name is built on

Find this form in the Irish-to-English index → · What Ó and Mac actually mean

Is McInerney an Irish name?

McInerney is a Gaelic name: it was formed in Irish, from an Irish ancestor, before English was spoken here.

The five answers, and why it is rarely yes or no →

From Wikipedia — “McInerney”

The name McInerney is of noble Irish origin where it is found in the modern Irish form of Mac an Airchinnigh and in the old and literary forms of Mac an Oirchinnigh and Mac an Oirchindig. The pronunciation of Mac an Oirchinnigh led the name to be sometimes anglicised as McEnherheny in Irish documents from the 16th–19th centuries. The name translates to "son of the erenagh" in Irish, literally meaning "son of the Lord of church lands".

Read the full article ↗ · Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Neighbours — other names from the same counties

Creagh · Clare, Limerick Griffin · Clare, Limerick Hickey · Clare, Limerick Hurley · Limerick, Clare O'Brien · Clare, Limerick Ahern · Clare Carty · Clare Casey · Limerick Clancy · Clare Colgan · Clare Collins · Limerick Considine · Clare Cooney · Clare Cusack · Clare

Quick answers

Is McInerney an Irish name?

McInerney is a Gaelic name: it was formed in Irish, from an Irish ancestor, before English was spoken here. In Irish the name is Mac an Airchinnigh.

What does the surname McInerney mean?

McInerney (Irish: Mac an Airchinnigh) means “son of the erenagh — the hereditary steward of church lands”. Origin: Gaelic learned family.

Where in Ireland is the surname McInerney from?

The historic homeland of the McInerney name is Clare, Limerick. People moved, so the name can be found far beyond it.

What is the Irish for McInerney?

Mac an Airchinnigh. Related spellings: MacInerney.

Looking for the McInerney family crest? Read this first — arms belong to people, not surnames, and the honest version is more interesting. Tracing McInerney ancestors? The step-by-step guide.

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