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O'Bryant Family Genealogy Webpage

O'Bryant Family - Coat of Arms

Welcome to the O'Bryant Family Genealogy webpage.

It is the intention of this webpage to gather and post helpful information that may aid my fellow O'Bryants in thier search for our genealogy.

I myself am a distant relative of Wilson O'Bryant, who as far was we know was the first in our family to come to America from Ireland.

A lot of questions still remain as to Wilson's background and a lot of work still remains to be done to further the O'Bryant genealogy back into Ireland. So if you have any information you think would be helpful to your fellow O'Bryants please share.

Information regarding possible nationality for the surname O'Bryant

* possible surname variants - O'Bryant, O'Briant, O'Brient, Bryant, Briant, Brient, O'Bryan,       O'Brian,O'Brien, Bryan, Brian, Brien, etc.

In one or more of the preceding variants, of England, Scotland, Ireland and France:

(1) From a Breton personal name containing the element: (Brythonic Celtic Language )

   Bri - height, dignity, esteem (Dauzat, Black),

It is still used in Brittany and has come back into use in England during the present century" (Withycomb). As a family name in England, Reaney, who gives twelve variants, maintains that in the south it is a Breton personal name introduced by the Normans, and, according to Black,� by Bretons who among the Normans in the invasion of England", but in the north "it is O[ld] Ir[ish] Brian, bought by Norsemen from Iceland...to Cumberland and across the Pennines into Yorkshire."    In Scotland, Black cites the forms Brian, Brien and Bryan, and ascribes the Breton origin to them, as does Dauzat, Briant, Briend.

(2) From a Celtic (Old Welsh/Irish) name containing the element:

   Bre - hill (Cottle), of similar form and significance.

In Ireland, MacLysaght sees the family O'Brien, O�Briain "deriving from the family of King Brian Boru", but notices that O'Brien may also be a synonym of O'Bryne (SEE BRYNE), of Bryan, and of MacBryan, Mac Braoin.   Guppy traced Bryan widespread, especially in Leicestershire and Rutlandshire and Oxfordshire, Bryant especially in Somerset(Cornwall) and Wiltshire. Spiegalehalter traced Brian, Bryan (t) in Devon. Matthews traced Brien, Bryan in Ireland, Devon(Cornwall) and Dorset. Briant and Bryant in Devon(Cornwall). MacLysaght found O'Brien "now very numerous in other provinces as well as Munster, being the fifth most numerous name in Ireland", Bryan " The name of a prominent Anglo-Norman family settled in Co. Kilkenny", and MacBryan, sometimes changed to O'Brien in Cos. Fermanagh and Cavan.

See also BRYNE. (MacLysaght,Reaney)

(3) As a Baptismal name "Brian or Bryan has from early times been a favorite in Ireland on account of the national hero Brian Boroimhe; but it was, during the Middle Ages, equally popular in England...[when] for several centuries it was a favorite, as the many common surnames derived from it testify.... it survived in York [shire] Westmoreland, Cheshire, Lanc [ashire] until the 18th century, but gradually fell into disuse and came to be regarded as exclusively Irish name.
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O'Brien - (O'Briain) This Thomond (County Clare, Ireland) surname held extensive territory along the Cummeragh mountains, including the lands between Dungarvan and the river Suir.

Mac I Brien - (Mac Ui Bhrian) This branch of the Thomond O'Briens held large possessions in the barony of Owney and Arra in Tipperary and in the barony of Coonagh in County Limerick (Ireland).

In County Limerick, the barony 'Pubblebrien' stands in this family's honor.

Today the surname O'Brien is found all over southern Ireland, including the capitol city Dublin. The Irish O'Brien will have numerous variants in the modern era. Often the 'O' or 'Mac" have been dropped to form the Anglized form of the surname. The Statutes of Kilkenny in 1366 and the Penal Laws in the late 17th century both outlawed the speaking of Irish, and led to a shrinking of the Gaeltacht areas. When the Irish form of a surname was "Outlawed" often a family just removed the prefixed "O" or "Mac" and in some cases changed the surname to an English equaliant , as was the case in the surname McGowan, often changes to 'Smith"; as 'Gowan' is the Irish word for a smith.

Source - "The Book of Irish Families, Great & Small" Volume 1, third edition by Michael C. O'Laughlin   - - ISBN 0-940134-09-8    - www.Irishroots.com