The Conlon family is an Irish noble family, the original Gaelic spelling being Ó Connalláin. In the tenth and eleventh centuries, the O'Conalláin were Princes of Ui Laeghari, an extensive territory in the counties of

Meath County Meath ( ; or simply , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is bordered by County Dublin to the southeast, County ...

and

Westmeath County Westmeath (; or simply ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It formed part of the historic Kingdom of ...

, where the

High King of Ireland High King of Ireland ( ) was a royal title in Gaelic Ireland held by those who had, or who are claimed to have had, lordship over all of Ireland. The title was held by historical kings and was later sometimes assigned anachronously or to leg ...

historically derived his seat at the

Hill of Tara The Hill of Tara ( or ) is a hill and ancient ceremonial and burial site near Skryne in County Meath, Ireland. Tradition identifies the hill as the inauguration place and seat of the High Kings of Ireland; it also appears in Irish mythology. ...

. The O'Conlons were chiefs of Crioch Tullach, in

County Tyrone County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. Its county town is Omagh. Adjoined to the south-west shore of Lough Neagh, the cou ...

and branches of this family in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries settled in the counties of

Roscommon Roscommon (; ; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60 road (Ireland), N60, N61 road (Ireland), N61 and N63 road (Irelan ...

Galway Galway ( ; , ) is a City status in Ireland, city in (and the county town of) County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lough Corrib and Galway Bay. It is the most populous settlement in the province of Connacht, the List of settleme ...

and Mayo. As a sept 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 ...

, they claim descent from

Niall of the Nine Hostages Niall Noígíallach (; Old Irish "having nine hostages"), or Niall of the Nine Hostages, was a legendary, semi-historical Irish king who was the ancestor of the Uí Néill dynasties that dominated Ireland from the 6th to the 10th centuries. ...

and his son

Conall Gulban Conall Gulban (died c. 464) was an Irish king and eponymous ancestor of the ''Cenél Conaill'', who founded the kingdom of '' Tír Chonaill'' in the 5th century, comprising much of what is now County Donegal in Ulster. He was the son of Niall ...

, both High Kings of Ireland.

Name

O'Conlon is a variation of the anglicised version of Ó Connalláin. The name may be derived from two Irish Gaelic words "Con" (the genitive case of Cú, meaning "hound") and "Lón" meaning lion - thereby implying a person who has the characteristics of a lion born of a hound - strength and speed. It is sometimes spelt Conlan, Conlen and Conlin. Like most surnames, it is occasionally used as a first name.

Origins

The O'Conlons are a sept of the

Cenél Conaill 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 ...

, or "kindred of Conall", specifically descended as part of ''Cenél Aedha'', through Aedha mac Ainmirech great-great grandson of Conall Gulban. His father, Ainmirech mac Sétnai is brother of Lugaid mac Sétnai, founder of the Cenél Luighdech. The Cenél Aedha are said to have given their name to the barony of

Tirhugh Tirhugh (; ) is a barony in County Donegal, Ireland. Baronies were mainly cadastral rather than administrative units. They acquired modest local taxation and spending functions in the 19th century before being superseded by the Local Government ...

(Tír Aedha) in County Donegal. Their kingdom was known as Tír Conaill, with their powerbase at Mag Ithe in the Finn valley, however they gradually expanded to cover what is now counties Donegal and

Fermanagh Historically, Fermanagh (), as opposed to the modern County Fermanagh, was a kingdom of Gaelic Ireland, associated geographically with present-day County Fermanagh. ''Fir Manach'' originally referred to a distinct kin group of alleged Laigin or ...

. The Cenél Conaill clashed regularly with their kin the Cenél nEogain, eventually capturing the latter's original power-base of Ailech in the

Inishowen peninsula Inishowen () is a peninsula in the north of County Donegal in Ireland. Inishowen is the largest peninsula on the Ireland, island of Ireland. The Inishowen peninsula includes Ireland's most northerly point, Malin Head. The Grianan of Aileach, a ...

—in modern-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 ...

—by the 12th century. Related dynasties descended through Conall Cremthainne and Diarmait mac Cerbaill included the

Síl nÁedo Sláine Síl nÁedo Sláine () are the descendants of Áed Sláine (Áed mac Diarmato), son of Diarmait mac Cerbaill. Part of the Southern Uí Néill—they were the kings of Brega—they claimed descent from Niall Noígiallach and his son Con ...

, the

kings of Brega The Kings of Brega were rulers of Brega, a petty kingdom north of Dublin in medieval Ireland. Overview Brega took its name from ' ('), meaning "fine plain", in modern County Meath, County Louth and County Dublin, Ireland. They formed part of th ...

, descended from Colmán Már's youngest brother

Áed Sláine Áed mac Diarmato (died 604), called Áed Sláine (Áed of Slane), was the son of Diarmait mac Cerbaill. Legendary stories exist of Áed's birth. Saint Columba is said to have prophesied his death. His descendants, the Síl nÁedo Sláine— ...

and the

Kings of Uisnech The Kings of Uisnech were of the Uí Néill and one of its major southern branches, the Clann Cholmáin. The Hill of Uisnech is located in what is now County Westmeath County Westmeath (; or simply ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Re ...

, among others, belonging to

Clann Cholmáin Clann Cholmáin is the dynasty descended from Colmán Már mac Diarmato, son of Diarmait mac Cerbaill. Part of the Southern Uí Néill — they were the kings of Mide (Meath) — they traced their descent to Niall Noígiallach and hi ...

. Through the common ancestry of

Lóegaire mac Néill Lóegaire also Lóeguire, is said to have been a son of Niall of the Nine Hostages. The Irish annals and king lists include him as a King of Tara or High King of Ireland. He appears as an adversary of Saint Patrick in several hagiographies. His ...

, the O'Conlons are also related to the O'Connell family, including Count Daniel Charles O'Connell,

Eibhlín Dubh Ní Chonaill Eibhlín Dubh Ní Chonaill (also known as Eileen O'Connell, ) was a member of the Irish gentry and a poet. She was the main composer of '' Caoineadh Airt Uí Laoghaire'', a traditional lament in Irish described (in its written form) as the grea ...

and the O'Connell Baronets. Several prominent figures originating from the Tir Conail kingdom included Maximilian, Count von Tyrconnell.O'Domhnaill Abu (Spring 1987) ''O'Donnell Clan Newsletter'' no.7, (ISSN 0790-7389)

People

Other people from the Conlon family include: *

Barry Conlon Barry John Conlon (born 1 October 1978) is an Irish former professional footballer and Head Coach of New York-based LMFC Blue Jaguars As a player he was a striker from 1996 to 2013. Conlon's career started with Queens Park Rangers but he moved ...

(born 1978), Irish football player * Charles M. Conlon (1868–1945), American photographer *

David Conlon David Conlon (born 1982) is an Irish mathematician who is a Professor of Mathematics at the California Institute of Technology. His research interests are in Hungarian-style combinatorics, particularly Ramsey theory, extremal graph theory, combin ...

(born 1982), Irish mathematician * Edward Conlon (born 1965), a New York police officer and author * Fred Conlon (1943–2005), an Irish sculptor *

Gerry Conlon Gerard Patrick Conlon (1 March 1954 – 21 June 2014) was an Irish man known for being one of the Guildford Four who spent 15 years in prison after being wrongly convicted of being a Provisional IRA bomber. Biography Gerard Conlon was born in ...

(1954-2014), a member of the Guildford Four *

James Conlon James Conlon (born March 18, 1950) is an American conductor. He is currently the music director of Los Angeles Opera and principal conductor of the RAI National Symphony Orchestra. Early years Conlon grew up in a family of five children on Che ...

(born 1950), an American conductor *

John Conlon John Conlon (born 23 January 1989) is an Irish hurler who plays for Clare Senior Championship club Clonlara. He usually lined out as a full-forward until 2020, when he became Clare's first choice for centre back. Playing career St. Flannan's ...

(born 1989), hurler with

Clonlara Clonlara, officially Cloonlara (), is a village in County Clare, Ireland, and a Roman Catholic parish of the same name. Village and amenities Clonlara is in the east of County Clare in the civil parish of Kiltonanlea or Doonass, barony of T ...

and

Clare GAA The Clare County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) () or Clare GAA is one of the 32 County board (Gaelic games), county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Clare. Clare plays its home games at ...

Kelly Conlon Kelly Conlon (born March 20, 1969) is an American bass guitarist. He has been a hired musician with Death (metal band), Death and Monstrosity (band), Monstrosity. Conlon currently performs with Agent Steel. Career Conlon was part of the Florida ...

(born 1969), an American bass guitarist * Mary A. Conlon (1870–1936), an American elementary school principal who founded Walton High School *

Paddy Conlon (publican) Paddy Conlon (fl. c. 1925) was an Australian publican who founded the town of Narembeen, Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern O ...

, the founder of the town of Narembeen in Western Australia * Patrick Conlon (artist), an American tattooist and comics illustrator *

Patrick Conlon (politician) Patrick Frederick "Pat" Conlon (born 1959) is a former South Australian politician who represented the Electoral district of Elder in the South Australian House of Assembly as a member of the Labor Party from 1997 to 2014. He was Minister fo ...

(born 1959), an Australian politician * Patrick "Giuseppe" Conlon, a member of the

Maguire Seven The Guildford Four and Maguire Seven were two groups of people, mostly Northern Irish, who were wrongly convicted in English courts in 1975 and 1976 of the Guildford pub bombings of 5 October 1974 and the Woolwich pub bombing of 7 November 1974. ...

* P. J. Conlon (born 1993), Irish-American baseball player * Paul Conlon (rugby league) (born 1966), Australian former professional rugby league footballer * Paul Conlon (footballer) (born 1978), English former footballer *

Peter Conlon Peter Conlon is an American politician who has served in the Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The H ...

, American politician * Richard Conlon (born 1965 in Hemel Hempstead), is an English playwright *

Robert Daniel Conlon Robert Daniel Conlon (born December 4, 1948) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as bishop of the Diocese of Joliet in Illinois from 2011 to 2020. From 2002 to 2011 he served as bishop of the Diocese of Steubenville i ...

(born 1948), U.S. Catholic bishop *

Sarah Conlon Sarah Conlon ( Maguire; 20 January 1926 – 19 July 2008) was an Irish housewife and a prominent campaigner in one of the most high-profile miscarriage of justice cases in British legal history. She spent decades clearing the names of her husba ...

(1926–2008), Irish activist *

Sean Conlon Sean Kieran Conlon (born 20 May 1981) is an English singer and songwriter. He is best known as a member of boy band Five. Early life Conlon was born in Leeds, West Yorkshire, of Irish and Trinidadian descent and has a brother and two sisters. ...

(born 1981), singer-songwriter * Spot Conlon, a fictional character in the 1992 film

Newsies ''Newsies'' is a 1992 American historical musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Pictures. Directed by choreographer Kenny Ortega (in his feature directorial debut) and written by Bob Tzudiker and Noni White, it is loosely based on the ...

, based on an actual person who was quoted in regards to the New York Newsies Strike of 1899. * Tim Conlon (disambiguation), multiple people *

Tom Conlon Tom George Sawyer Conlon (born 3 February 1996) is an English Association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for, and Captain (association football), captains, club Oldham Athletic A.F.C., Oldham Athletic. He has represented the En ...

(born 1996), English footballer * Vera Conlon (1906–1994), British

archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

photographer A photographer (the Greek φῶς (''phos''), meaning "light", and γραφή (''graphê''), meaning "drawing, writing", together meaning "drawing with light") is a person who uses a camera to make photographs. Duties and types of photograp ...

Conlon Nancarrow Samuel Conlon Nancarrow (; October 27, 1912 – August 10, 1997) was an American-Mexican composer who lived and worked in Mexico for most of his life. Nancarrow is best remembered for his ''Studies for Player Piano'', being one of the first ...

(1912–1997), an American composer who took Mexican citizenship in 1955 *

Thomas Connellan Thomas Connellan ( – 1698) was an Irish harp player and composer. Life Connellan was born about 1625 at Cloonmahon, County Sligo. Both he and his brother William Connellan became harpers. Thomas is reputed to have composed between 700 and ...

(1640–1698), Irish composer *

Mary Connellan Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religion * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...

, (fl. c. 1720), harpist *

William Connellan William Connellan (c.1630; date of death unknown) was an Irish harper and composer for the harp. Life William Connellan was born in Cloonamahon, County Sligo, the younger brother of Thomas Connellan (c.1625–1698). Like Thomas, he became a har ...

(fl. mid-17th century, brother of Thomas), Irish harpist * Lawrence O'Connellan (

fl. ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...

1756), Irish Dominican Superior of

Louvain Leuven (, , ), also called Louvain (, , ), is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the sub-municipalities of ...

, from

County Sligo County Sligo ( , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Northern and Western Region and is part of the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht. Sligo is the administrative capital and largest town in ...

Thady Connellan Thady Connellan () (1780–1854) was an Irish school-teacher, poet and historian. Life He was born in Skreen, County Sligo, and was a relative of the scholar Owen Connellan. He started a school of his own, but had more success when he becam ...

(1780-1854), Irish teacher and scholar *

Owen Connellan Owen Connellan (1797 – 4 August 1871) was an Irish scholar who translated the ''Annals of the Four Masters'' into English in 1846. Life He was born in County Sligo, the son of a farmer who claimed descent from Lóegaire mac Néill, High K ...

(1797–1871), Irish historian * Thomas Connellan (priest) (1855–about 1920), Irish priest * Edward Connellan (1912–1983), Australian aviator; founder of

Connellan Airways Connellan Airways (later Connair) was an airline headquartered in Alice Springs, Australia. It operated scheduled flights as well other air transport services throughout the Northern Territory from 1939 to 1980. History The company was f ...

Leo Connellan Leo Connellan (November 30, 1928 – February 22, 2001) was an American poet of the Beat Generation born in Portland, Maine, who served as Connecticut's Poet Laureate from 1996 until his death in 2001. Life Leo Connellan grew up in Rockl ...

(1928–2001), American poet *

Joe Connellan Joseph Connellan, known as Joe Connellan (died 11 April 1967) was a nationalist politician and newspaper editor in Ireland. Connellan joined Sinn Féin in 1908 and was prominent in the Newry Sluagh. Later in life, he was active in the Gaelic Lea ...

(died 1967), Irish newspaper editor and politician *

Ray Connellan Ray Connellan (born 29 June 1994) is an Irish former Australian rules footballer with the St Kilda Football Club in the Australian Football League. He previously played Gaelic football with his local club Athlone Athlone (; ) is a town ...

, Irish sportsperson * Marie Christine Conlon (born 1985), American Graphic Designer and Illustrator

Bibliography

* * "Meath-county Tartan - Kinloch Anderson". ''www.kinlochanderson.com''. Retrieved 2021-10-04 * * The O Clery Book of Genealogies, Seamus Pender (ed.), in Analecta Hibernica, No. 18, 1951 pp. 1-198 * Burke, Bernard and Ashworth Peter Burke, A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry of Ireland. London: Harrison & Sons. 9th edition, 1899. * Marquis de Ruvigny, Melville H., The Nobilities of Europe. London: Melville and Company. 1910. (repr. Adamant Media Corporation, 2000

Other

Conlon v Ozolins Conlon v Ozolins (1984) NZLR 489 is an important New Zealand case involving the legal issues of non est factum and mutual mistake. Facts Mrs. Ozolins, an elderly widow from Latvia in her seventies decided to sell three of the four sections th ...

, a New Zealand court case

References