Donnelly Irish Family Gifts & Heritage

Donnelly, also written O’Donnelly, comes from the Irish Ó Donnghaile, “descendant of Donnghal,” a name meaning brown valor. The family belonged to Cenél nEógain, the northern dynasty that produced the O’Neills. First seated at Drumleen near Lifford in Donegal, the O’Donnellys moved to Ballydonnelly, now Castlecaulfield near Dungannon in Tyrone. There they served as hereditary marshals of O’Neill’s army and fostered the young Shane O’Neill, and a Donnell O’Donnelly fell with his hundred men at Kinsale in 1601. Smaller families of the name took root in Sligo, Cork, Tipperary and Galway.

Tyrone-born poet Charles Donnelly, killed at Jarama in the Spanish Civil War in 1937, is among the name’s best-remembered modern bearers.

Bring that northern heritage home with the Donnelly woven blanket, accent mug and ceramic Christmas ornament, all set on the Irish National Tartan, along with a tartan coaster set for the coffee table. The garden flag and wall pennant put the name on display, the crest T-shirt suits family reunions, and the novelty license plate finishes the car. Read our Donnelly surname history.