The O'Cahan ( Irish: ''Ó Catháin'' 'descendants of Cahan') were a powerful

sept A sept () is a division of a family, especially of a Scottish or Irish family. The term is used both in Scotland and in Ireland, where it may be translated as Irish , meaning "progeny" or "seed", and may indicate the descendants of a person ...

of the

Northern Uí Néill The Northern Uí Néill was any of several dynasties in north-western medieval Ireland that claimed descent from a common ancestor, Niall of the Nine Hostages. Other dynasties in central and eastern Ireland who also claimed descent from Niall ar ...

Cenél nEógain Cenél is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Cenél Conaill, the name of the "kindred" or descendants of Conall Gulban, son of Niall Noígiallach defined by oral and recorded history * Cenél nEógain (in English, Cenel Eogan) is ...

medieval Ireland Ireland in the Middle Ages may refer to: * History of Ireland (400–795), Ireland in the early Middle Ages * History of Ireland (795–1169), Ireland in the high Middle Ages *History of Ireland (1169–1536), Ireland in the late Middle Ages See ...

. The name is presently

anglicized Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English language ...

as O'Kane, Kane and Keane. The O'Cahan's originated in Laggan in the east of present-day

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...

and from there moved eastwards in the twelfth century, ousting the O'Connor from Keenaght in present-day

County Londonderry County Londonderry (Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry (), is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty-two Counties of Ireland, count ...

. They held the lordship of Keenaght and Coleraine until the seventeenth century, to which it was commonly referred to as "O'Cahan's country". Under the sub-ordination of their kin, the O'Neills, they held the privilege of inaugurating the chief of the O'Neill by tossing a shoe over the new chief's head in acceptance of his rule. There is also an unrelated sept of O'Cahan in the province of

Connacht Connacht or Connaught ( ; or ), is the smallest of the four provinces of Ireland, situated in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, C ...

, the O'Cahan Ui Fiachra (''Ó Catháin Uí Fiachrach''). At first, O'Cahan held the title chief of Cenel Ianna. After expelling O'Drennan (''Ó Draighneán''), chief of Cenel Sedna, O'Cahan was henceforth known as chief of Cenel Sedna. The earliest recorded O'Cahan was Eoghan O'Cahan (''Eogháin Ua Catháin''), abbot of

Clonfert Clonfert () is a small village in east County Galway, Ireland, halfway between Ballinasloe and Portumna. The village gives its name to the Diocese of Clonfert (Roman Catholic), Diocese of Clonfert. Clonfert Cathedral is one of the eight cathedr ...

(''Cluan-fearta-Brennainn''),

County Galway County Galway ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region, taking up the south of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. The county population was 276,451 at the 20 ...

, died 980 A.D.

Naming conventions

The surname has been

anglicised Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English language ...

O'Cahan, Cahan, O'Kane, Kane, O'Keane, Keane, O'Kean, Kean, and similar variations thereof.

History

The O'Cahan sept of Keenaght Glengiven first appear on record in 1138. A thirteenth-century chief of the family was Cumee na Gall O'Cahan. A heavily restored effigy at Dungiven Priory is sometimes associated with Cumee, although it appears to date to the last quarter of the fifteenth century, and seems to be that of a later member of the sept. Dunseverick Castle also formed part of the O'Cahan possessions until it was destroyed by Scottish troops under the command of

Robert Monro Robert Monro (died 1680) was a Scottish general from the Clan Munro of Ross-shire, Scotland. He held command in the Swedish army under Gustavus Adolphus during Thirty Years' War. He also fought for the Scottish Covenanters during the Bishop's Wa ...

during the

Irish Rebellion of 1641 The Irish Rebellion of 1641 was an uprising in Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, initiated on 23 October 1641 by Catholic gentry and military officers. Their demands included an end to anti-Catholic discrimination, greater Irish self-governance, and ...

. The clan suffered a blow during the battle of Drumderg, where fifteen O'Cahan chieftains were slain in battle against the Normans and their gaelic allies. Rory Dall O'Cahan, an Irish

harpist The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has individual string (music), strings running at an angle to its sound board (music), soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing ...

of the 17th century most famous as the composer of

Give Me Your Hand "Give Me Your Hand" (Irish language, Irish: Tabhair dom do Lámh) is a tune from early 17th century Ireland by Rory Dall O'Cahan. It is one of the most widely recorded pieces of Irish traditional music. Composer According to Edward Bunting, in Th ...

, may have penned the popular Irish tune the "

Londonderry Air The "Londonderry Air" is an Irish air (folk tune) that originated in County Londonderry, first recorded in the nineteenth century. The tune is played as the victory sporting anthem of Northern Ireland at the Commonwealth Games. The song " Dan ...

", in order to lament the destruction of O'Cahan power. Consequently, it may have been originally called " O'Cahan's Lament". The music is best known as the tune of the song " Danny Boy".Explore Limavady
/ref>By the late 16th-century, "O'Cahan's Country" became the county of Coleraine. The majority of Ó Catháin chiefs fled Ulster in the

Flight of the Earls On 14 September ld Style and New Style dates, O.S. 4 September1607, Irish earls Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, and Rory O'Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell, permanently departed Rathmullan in Ireland for mainland Europe, accompanied by their fa ...

in 1607, and under the terms of

Surrender and regrant During the Tudor conquest of Ireland (c.1540–1603), "surrender and regrant" was the legal mechanism by which Irish clans were to be converted from a power structure rooted in clan and kin loyalties, to a late-Feudalism, feudal system under t ...

they forfeited their lands to the English crown. During the subsequent

Plantation of Ulster The Plantation of Ulster (; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster Scots: ) was the organised Settler colonialism, colonisation (''Plantation (settlement or colony), plantation'') of Ulstera Provinces of Ireland, province of Irelandby people from Great ...

, County Coleraine along with parts of counties Antrim, Donegal, and Tyrone, were merged to form County Londonderry. After the

in 1607, Donnell Ballagh O'Cahan, Chief of the Ó Catháin (and at one time knighted by the English Crown), was captured and sent to the Tower of London, where he died in 1626. There has been no Chief since.

External links

Ó Catháin in Ireland

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ocahan Irish families Irish clans Ancient Irish dynasties O'Neill dynasty

Naming conventions

History

See also

External links

References