O'Keeffe

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For the American painter, see Georgia O'Keeffe. For the American conservative filmmaker, see James O'Keefe.

O'Keeffe and O'Keefe, are the anglicised versions of the Irish surname Ó Caoimh, from caomh, meaning "kind" or "gentle". Ó means "grandson of" or "descended from". The feminine form of the name is Ní Chaoimh.

History

Coat of arms and motto forti et fideli nihil difficile on a stained glass window in Wexford by Harry Clarke

The original Caomh, from whom the family descend, lived in the early eleventh century, and was descended from Cathal mac Finguine, celebrated King of Munster and the most powerful Irish king of the first half of the 8th century. See the main article, Eóganachta, for more discussion, as well as Eóganacht Glendamnach, the specific sept of the family.

The O'Keeffes are famous for claiming descent from the goddess Clíodhna and have a beloved story about her marriage to Caomh (Franklin, pp. 81 ff). Her sister Aibell competed for his affections but Clíodhna ultimately triumphed using sorcery.

For all of their history the family has been strongly associated with County Cork. Originally the territory of the family lay along the banks of the Blackwater river, near modern Fermoy, and were active in the wars of the twelfth century between the O'Connors and the Eoghanacht dynasties of Munster.

However, the arrival of the Normans displaced them, like so many others, and they moved west into the barony of Duhallow, where their territory became known, and is still known, as Pobal O'Keeffe, where the senior branch of the family had their seat at Dromagh in Dromtarriff Parish.

The last chiefs of this branch were Domhnall O'Keeffe of Dromagh (d. c. 1655), who was prominent in the Catholic Rebellion of the 1640s, and his son Captain Daniel O'Keeffe, who was killed fighting for King James at the Battle of Aughrim in 1691. The family estates were confiscated in 1703, and sold to the Hollow Blades Company.

Even today, Pobal O'Keeffe is still the area in which the name is most common, with surrounding areas of County Cork also including many of the name. It remains relatively rare outside that county. In 1890, more than two-thirds of the births under the name are recorded in County Cork.

Like many of the dispossessed Irish nobility, the O'Keeffes were active in the service of the Catholic monarchs of Europe. In 1740 Constantine O'Keeffe (born c. 1670) was admitted to the French aristocracy on the basis of his Irish pedigree, and his long service. The bearers of the surname "Cuif", found in the Champagne district of northern France, are descendants of O'Keeffe soldiers.

The original spelling is with 2 ff's (O'Keeffe), and church officials recorded names as they were wrongly spelled, then often resulting in the name of a single person being recorded under several spelling variations, such as O'Keefe, Keefe, Keeffe, Keiffe, and others

Ó Caoimh

People named O'Keefe

  • Andrew O'Keefe (born 1971), Australian TV personality
  • Arthur O'Keefe (1876–1943) American banker and mayor of New Orleans
  • Dan O'Keefe, writer and Seinfeld popularizer of Festivus, an annual secular holiday invented by his father Daniel O'Keefe
  • Daniel O'Keefe, editor and author, original inventor of Festivus
  • Dan O'Keefe, a former member of the California state Senate
  • David Dean O'Keefe (born circa 1824 or 1828, died 1901), Irishman who created stone money and became the virtual king of the island of Yap
  • Daniel J. O'Keefe (born 1950), American communication and argumentation theory scholar
  • Danny O'Keefe, (born 1943), American singer-songwriter based in Seattle, Washington
  • Dennis O'Keefe (1908–1968), American film actor
  • Dennis O'Keefe, the mayor of St. Johns, Newfoundland, Canada
  • Derrick O'Keefe (born 1977), Canadian progressive writer, political activist and blogger
  • Eamon O'Keefe, English-born Irish former professional footballer
  • Eric O'Keefe (born 1961), American author, editor, and journalist
  • Eugene O'Keefe (1827–1913) founder of the O'Keefe Brewery in Toronto
  • Frank O'Keefe (1912–1989), Australian politician
  • Gerald Francis O'Keefe (1917–2000), Catholic bishop of Davenport, Iowa, USA
  • James O'Keefe (born 1984), American conservative videographer/investigative journalist
  • James O'Keefe (cardiologist) (born 1956), Dr. James O'Keefe, MD: American author and preventive cardiologist
  • Jodi Lyn O'Keefe (born 1978), American actress and model
  • John O'Keefe (disambiguation)
  • Joseph "Specs" O'Keefe, one of the participants in the Great Brinks Robbery
  • Ken O'Keefe (born 1953), American college football coach
  • Kerin O'Keefe American wine critic and author
  • Lauren O'Keefe, American singer and member of girl group Jada
  • Laurence O'Keefe (disambiguation)
  • Mark O'Keefe American comedy screenwriter
  • Michael A. O'Keefe (born 1942), Australian-American physicist
  • Michael O'Keefe, (born 1955), American film and television actor
  • Michael H. O'Keefe, American politician; convicted felon
  • Neil O'Keefe (born 1947), retired Australian politician and lobbyist
  • Ryan O'Keefe (born 1981), Australian Football League player
  • Sean O'Keefe, Chancellor of Louisiana State University, former NASA administrator and aerospace industry executive
  • Stephen O'Keefe (born 1984), Australian cricketer and current New South Wales player
  • Richard O'Keefe, computer scientist
  • Thomas O'Keefe (born 1964) American musician known for his work in the group Antiseen
  • Walter O'Keefe (1900–1983),American songwriter, actor and syndicated columnist

People named O'Keeffe

Fictional characters

Other uses

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.clarechampion.ie/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=13075:high-court-judge-steps-down-from-the-bench&catid=55:ennis&Itemid=56
  • Byrne, Francis J., Irish Kings and High-Kings. Four Courts Press. 2nd edition, 2001.
  • Charles-Edwards, Thomas M., Early Christian Ireland. Cambridge University Press. 2000.
  • Franklin, D., "Cliodhna, the Queen of the Fairies of South Munster", in Journal of the Cork Historical and Archaeological Society, Volume III, Second Series. 1897. pp. 81 ff
  • MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families: Their Names, Arms and Origins. Irish Academic Press. 4th edition, 1998.
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