Neylon is an
anglicized version of the Irish surname Ó Nialláin. Other English language forms of the name include Nealon, O'Neylan, Nyland and Neilan. They were a
sept of the
Dalcassian (Irish:
Dál gCais) tribe located in the kingdom of
Thomond, which is now predominantly modern-day
County Clare
County Clare () is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern part of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council ...
but encompassed parts of modern-day Tipperary and Limerick. Some early references to the name in this area come from references made to the completion in 1016 of a fortified dwelling overlooking Ballyalla lake, north of Ennis, which had the blessing of the ruling
O'Brien family.
Throughout the reign of the O'Briens in the region the Neylon family acted as medics and clergy as well as providing soldiers for the kingdom's defence. Two such examples of this are Ailill Ua Nialláin (d. 1093) who was
Abbot of Clonmacnoise and a James Neylon who graduated from
Oxford University
The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
with a degree in Arts and Medicine in the 16th century.
[Art Cosgrove, "Early modern Ireland : 1534 - 1691", in Art Cosgrove (ed.), ''A New History of Ireland: Early modern Ireland : 1534 - 1691, Volume 3'', Oxford University Press, 1991]
During the course of the 1594 John Neylon, son of then
Bishop of Kildare Daniel Neylon (or O'Neylan as he is recorded in some documents), was bequeathed the castle of Dysert O'Dea near Corofin along with other lands in Inchiquin
However, during the
Cromwellian conquest of Ireland, Cromwellian and
Williamite wars of the 17th century a lot of Irish nobles lost their land and titles after the outcomes of these wars didn't go in their favour and English rule in Ireland took a firm grip. The Neylon family appeared to remain in the general area but no longer at the centre of political affairs.
Like many other Irish families, the
Great Irish Famine of the 1840s caused many members of the Neylon to emigrate to Britain, America and even further afield in order to survive. The Neylon name is still commonly found in many parts of Ireland.
Popularity
67% of the Neylons live in Ireland, 20% live in the USA, 8% in the United Kingdom while 5% of the Neylons live in a non-mentioned country.
Coat of arms
The family
coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...
constitutes two unicorns on a black background with a hand holding a dagger over the shield. In medieval
heraldry
Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and genealo ...
these symbols are interpreted as follows:
Unicorn - Extreme courage; virtue and strength
Black (Sable) Background - Constancy or grief
Dagger - Justice and military honou
References
{{Reflist
Septs of the Dál gCais
Surnames