The Irish name Fahey has a long Gaelic heritage to its credit. The Fahey motto translated is "Hope".
Where did the Irish Fahey family come from? What is the Irish Fahey family crest and coat of arms? When did the Fahey family first arrive in the United States? Where did the various branches of the family go? What is the Fahey family history?
The Irish name Fahey has a long Gaelic heritage to its credit. The original Gaelic form of the name Fahey is O Fathaigh, derived from the word "fothadh," meaning "foundation."
Fahey Early Origins
Pronunciation, rather than spelling, guided scribes and church officials when recording names during the Middle Ages. This practice often resulted in one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname Fahey are preserved in these old documents. The various spellings of the name that were found include Fahey, Fahie, Fahy, Fay, O'Fahey, O'Fahy, Vahey and many more.
First found in Galway, where they held a family seat from very ancient times.
During the 19th century thousands of impoverished Irish families made the long journey to British North America and the United States. These people were leaving a land that had become beset with poverty, lack of opportunity, and hunger. In North America, they hoped to find land, work, and political and religious freedoms. Although the majority of the immigrants that survived the long sea passage did make these discoveries, it was not without much perseverance and hard work: by the mid-19th century land suitable for agriculture was short supply, especially in British North America, in the east; the work available was generally low paying and physically taxing construction or factory work; and the English stereotypes concerning the Irish, although less frequent and vehement, were, nevertheless, present in the land of freedom, liberty, and equality for all men. The largest influx of Irish settlers occurred with Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s. Research into passenger and immigration lists has brought forth evidence of the early members of the Fahey family in North America:
Fahey Settlers in the United States in the 19th Century
Mary Fahey, who arrived in New York, NY in 1816
Tim T Fahey, who arrived in New York, NY in 1816
Garrit Fahey, who arrived in New York, NY in 1816
Tim Fahey, who arrived in New York, NY in 1816
Martin Fahey, aged 21, landed in New York in 1849
Some noteworthy people of the name Fahey
Jeffrey Fahey (b. 1952), American actor
Michael Gahan "Mike" Fahey (b. 1943), 49th mayor of Omaha, Nebraska
Francis Raymond Fahey (1896-1954), American Major League Baseball outfielder and pitcher
David M Fahey (b. 1937), American historian and former history professor
Fahey Family Crest
