While web searching Gorey family history I came across this purported Gorey family crest. The motto apparently translates as “By sea and by land”. The text said:
The Hebrides islands and the west coast of Scotland are the ancestral home of the Gorey family. Their name comes from the personal name Goraidh, an Old Norse forename. The Gaelic form of the name was Mac Goraidh, which means son of Goraidh. or son of Godfrey.
Spelling variations include: MacGorrie, MacGorry, MacGory, MacGorey and others.
First found in on the Isle of Skye where they were seated from early times and their first records appeared on the early census rolls taken by the early Kings of Britain to determine the rate of taxation of their subjects.
Some of the first settlers of this name or some of its variants were: Thomas MacGorrie settled in Texas in 1875; Hugh MacGorry settled in Philadelphia in 1852; David and James MacGory settled in Philadelphia in 1856.
My understanding is that the Goreys are Irish and that some made their way to Scotland, so I have no idea if this information applies to my family or not.
The fact the name may be of Norse origin “son of Godfrey” makes it possible the Irish and Scots variations are all related. Who knows?
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Hi my name is :Joyce Taylor & my Great-Grandmother had come from :Tullamore, Ireland & her name was: Maryann Margaret Dell Gorry *Gorrie*, she was a mail order bride :she was only about 18 or there abouts when she came over from Ireland, she had lived with my Great-Grandfather until she was old enough to marry him,as she was his 2nd wife:His name was :Robert Strongman, they had lived in a place called: Kerikeri,Bay Of Islands, New Zealand. Now I’m trying to find any of the Gorry,Gorrie.Gorey ,Families.
Hi Michael,
I am Irish and the Gorey name does indeed come from Ireland . The Gaelic translation means “son of a noble”. The connection to the Hebrides is always possible as the Celts in Scotland and Ireland are very much common and the languages are similar.
Hope this helps you .
Hi My Name is Karen Gorey and my family are from the mineral island of Lullymore in the Bog of Allen, near Rathangan County Kildare, Ireland. We have as a family tried to expand our family tree but all we can find are Gorey family (my grandfather Peter) in Drimsru also near Rathangan County Kildare. We have found members of the family in Offaly also. We were of the opinion that some came from France however the Scottish link is very plausible.
The names Peter, Michael, William, Denis, James are similar through the past three generations.
Would love to find the next link to my family.
Twitter: mgorey
says:
Thanks for your comment Karen. It’s really hard going back in Ireland past about 1850 and I don’t know the solution. I’m not even sure there is one.
I just think our surname is so uncommon there’s a strong chance those of us who carry it are related.
Yes probably so, maybe a “Clan” gathering in Ireland for 2013 would be an idea – it is called the Year of the Gathering by tourism chiefs after all!
Hi Karen,
I have no evidence that there is a French link to the Gorey name although there is a town in the island of Jersey with that name which I never found the connection for.
It may be of interest to you to know that I had my gene haplogroup check on the National Geographic Genome project where they mapped my male side of the genes and it showed that we share a heritage with around 85% of the people in the Basque region of Spain. The reason is very simple but interesting. During the last glaciation the southern edge of the glaciers about 10000 years ago ended in Northern Spain. If you ever visit the Basque region you will see pale skinned and freckly people like us and further south in Spain you will see darker skin from the Moorish invasions from Northern Africa. So our forefathers migrated North as the glaciers retreated and the sea level was such that they could walk to Ireland but they were stranded when the sea levels rose hence we have a pure gene structure, some of the purest in all of the world due to the isolated nature of the island and few transitory visitors.
Hi Brendan,wow that is really good to know that. as I’m into my Gaelic Ancestry in a big way. As I have a 2 Solid Silver & 1 Gold Claddag Rings from Ireland ,the Silver ring has an unpolished Emerald in the centre of the heart, and I wear them with pride, and just knowing the Gorey (Gorrie,Gorry)Family history is so good to know.
Hi Joyce my family must have missed taking the famine ship as most of the Goreys left during the famine in 1845. My grandparents were located in Dublin county in a small village called Clondalkin. The city has spread to engulf this town now and it is part of the city. You can e mail me at yerog@yahoo.com if you wish. The Scottish versions tend to spell our name as Gorrie or Gorry….take care.
Hi Michael & Brendan, Seem as though we certainly are all connected through our Irish ancestry.And yes I think my ancestors liked the Scottish version of Gorrie “Gorry”.Also I have another Gorey Family coat of arms as well.
The above Arms and crest is that of the Scottish Goreys, a sept of Clan MacDonald.
The Irish Gorey (Ó Guaire) coat of arms is a castle with three towers. The crest is two parallel wings. The tartan is Tara.
There is also a coat of arms apparently granted in 1632: http://www.ngw.nl/int/ier/g/gorey.htm