Kennedy (surname)

Kennedy
Pronunciation	/ˈkɛnɨdi/
Language(s)	Gaelic
Origin
Meaning	Derived either from Ó Cinnéide meaning grandson of Cinnédidh, or ceann and éidigh meaning "ugly head."
Region of origin	Ireland and Scotland
Other names
Related names	O'Kennedy and Kennedie

Look up Kennedy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Kennedy, alternately O'Kennedy and Kennedie, is a surname of Irish and Scottish origin that has also been used as a given name.

Origins

There have been several different etymologies given for the surname. One is that the name is an Anglicisation of the Gaelic Ó Ceannéidigh meaning "grandson of Ceannéidigh". Ceannéidigh is a given name derived from the Gaelic words ceann, meaning "head", and éidigh, meaning "ugly".^[1] In some etymologies, the element ceann is given as "chief" or "leader".^[2] Another possibility is that Kennedy is an Anglicisation of Ó Cinnéide, meaning "grandson of Cinnédidh" or "grandson of Cinnéidigh", with both of these personal names meaning "helmet headed.”^[3] Ceanéidigh could be related to the old Gaelic name Cennétig, which is known from Cennétig Mac Lorcáin, the father of the Irish high king Brian mac Cennétig, who himself was also known as Brian Bóruma or Brian Boru. There are also an Irish Kennedy family and a Scottish Kennedy clan of Carrick in Ayrshire, which are unrelated to one another.

People surnamed Kennedy

Members of the Kennedy political family

Main article: Kennedy family

Caroline Kennedy (born 1957), attorney; daughter of John and Jacqueline Kennedy
Ted Kennedy (1932–2009), senior U.S. senator from Massachusetts, married twice and father of three
Ethel Kennedy (born 1928), widow of Robert Francis Kennedy and mother of Joseph Patrick Kennedy II, Robert Francis Kennedy Jr. and other nine
Eunice Kennedy Shriver (1921–2009), sister of President John F. Kennedy; wife of Robert Sargent Shriver, Jr.
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (1929–1994), First Lady of the United States; widow of John F. Kennedy
Jean Kennedy Smith (born 1928), ambassador to Ireland; sister of President John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy (1917–1963), 35th President of the United States
John F. Kennedy, Jr. (1960–1999), attorney, publisher; son of John and Jacqueline
Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. (1888–1969), former Ambassador to the United Kingdom; father of President John F. Kennedy
Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. (1915–1944), WWII pilot; eldest son of Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr.
Joseph P. Kennedy II (born 1952), former U.S. representative from Massachusetts; son of Robert F. Kennedy
Kathleen Cavendish, Marchioness of Hartington (1920–1948), widow of the heir to the Devonshire dukedom; sister of President John F. Kennedy
Patrick J. Kennedy (born 1967), U.S. representative from Rhode Island, son of Ted Kennedy
Patricia Kennedy Lawford (1924–2006), sister of president John F. Kennedy, wife of Peter Lawford and mother of four
Robert F. Kennedy (1925–1968), U.S. senator from New York; U.S. Attorney General
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (born 1954), attorney, environmentalist, activist
Rose Kennedy (1890–1995), Kennedy family matriarch; mother of President John F. Kennedy
Rosemary Kennedy (1918–2005), oldest sister of President John F. Kennedy

Other people

A. L. Kennedy (Alison Louise Kennedy, born 1965), Scottish novelist
Adam Kennedy, Major League Baseball player
Adam Kennedy (actor), actor, screenwriter, novelist, painter
Adrian Kennedy, Irish radio host
Alan Kennedy (disambiguation), several people
Alexander Kennedy, British civil engineer
Alfred J. Kennedy (1877–1944), New York politician
Allan Kennedy (born 1958), Canadian-born American football player
Ambrose Jerome Kennedy, American politician
Anthony Kennedy, US Supreme Court Associate Justice
Arthur Kennedy (actor), American actor
Arthur Kennedy (governor), British colonial administrator
Ben Kennedy, Australian rugby league footballer
Benjamin Hall Kennedy, English classical scholar
Betty Kennedy, retired Canadian senator, television personality
Betty Ann Kennedy, American bridge player
Bill Kennedy (actor), actor and television personality
Bob Kennedy, Major League Baseball player and manager; father of Terry Kennedy
Bob Kennedy (athlete), distance runner
Callum Kennedy, English footballer
Carl Kennedy, stage actor
Charles Kennedy, Scottish politician, former leader of the Liberal Democrats
Claudia Kennedy, first female lieutenant general in the US Army, noted intelligence officer
Clem Kennedy, Australian rugby league footballer
Cortez Kennedy, American football player
Cory Kennedy, American Internet celebrity
Courtney Kennedy, dual Olympic medal winner in women's ice hockey
D. James Kennedy, American Presbyterian pastor and theologian
Darren Kennedy, Irish television presenter, fashion writer and stylist
David M. Kennedy, 60th Secretary of the Treasury of the United States of America, and U.S. Ambassador to NATO
Diane Kennedy, American CPA, speaker, financial writer
Donald Kennedy, American scientist, public administrator, and academic
Douglas Kennedy (writer), UK-based American author
Duncan Kennedy (legal philosopher), Carter Professor of General Jurisprudence, Harvard Law School
Edgar Kennedy, American actor
Edmund Kennedy, Australian explorer
Edward Kennedy (journalist), American journalist who first reported the German surrender in World War II
Edward Joseph Kennedy (born 1851), Irish nationalist politician, Member of Parliament for South Sligo
Edward Shirley Kennedy, British alpinist
Edward Stewart Kennedy, American historian of science
George Kennedy, American actor
Gerard Kennedy, Canadian politician
Gilbert G. Kennedy (1844–1909), Scottish footballer
Graeme K. (Graeme Kennedy), American musician
Graham Kennedy, Australian comedian and television presenter
Helena Kennedy, Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws, Scottish barrister, writer and politician
Hiram Raleigh Kennedy, American politician
Ian Kennedy, Famous Irish Landscape Architect
Ian Kennedy (born 1984), American baseball player
Jack Kennedy (train robber), American outlaw
James Kennedy (disambiguation)
Jamie Kennedy, American comedian and actor
John Kennedy (Scottish footballer), Scottish soccer player
John Kennedy (shortstop), American baseball player
John Kennedy (theologian), 19th-century Scottish theologian
John J. Kennedy (New York Treasurer), New York State Treasurer 1911–1914
John Neely Kennedy, Louisiana State Treasurer and 2008 U.S. Senate candidate
John P. Kennedy, U.S. Secretary of the Navy
Jon Kennedy, British drummer and electronic musician
Jonny Kennedy, subject of the documentary The Boy Whose Skin Fell Off
Joshua Kennedy, Australian soccer player
Kathryn Kennedy, California wine maker
Kennedy (musical artist), American musician
Kenneth Kennedy, the first Winter Olympian for Australia
Leland T. Kennedy, U.S. Air Force pilot twice awarded the Air Force Cross
Lena Kennedy, English romantic novelist
Leon S. Kennedy, frequent character in the Resident Evil franchise
Lisa Kennedy Montgomery (born 1972), stage name Kennedy, American political satirist and former MTV VJ
Lucy Napaljarri Kennedy, indigenous Australian artist
Ludovic Kennedy, British journalist, broadcaster, and author
Marcus Kennedy, American basketball player
Margaret Kennedy (1896–1967), English novelist
Mark Kennedy (footballer), Irish football (soccer) player
Mark Kennedy (politician), American politician
Mark Kennedy (infiltrator), British undercover policeman
Martin Kennedy (disambiguation), Several people
Mary Kennedy, Irish television personality
Matthew Kennedy (disambiguation), Several people
Mike Kennedy (baseball), American college baseball coach
Mr. Kennedy, the ring name used by American professional wrestler Ken Anderson (born 1976) during his time in WWE
Myles Kennedy, lead singer and guitarist for the rock band Alter Bridge
Nery Kennedy, Paraguayan javelin thrower
Nick Kennedy, English rugby player
Nigel Kennedy, English violinist
Pat Kennedy, American college basketball coach
Patrick Kennedy (director), British theatre director
Paul Kennedy, British historian of international relations
Ray Kennedy, English footballer
Ron Kennedy (1953–2009), Canadian ice hockey player
Sarah Kennedy British television and radio broadcaster
Sheila Kennedy, Penthouse model in the early 1980s
Simon Kennedy (born 1967), English sports agent
Stetson Kennedy (1916–2011), American human rights activist and folklore collector
Ted Kennedy (ice hockey) (1925–2009), Canadian ice hockey player
Terry Kennedy, Major League Baseball player; son of Bob Kennedy
Thomas Laird Kennedy, Premier of Ontario (1948–1949)
Tim Kennedy (fighter), mixed martial arts fighter
Tim Kennedy (ice hockey), hockey player
Tom Kennedy (born 1927), stage name of American game show host James Narz
Walter Kennedy, Scottish poet of the Renaissance court of James IV of Scotland
Walter Kennedy (1912–1977), American sports executive; NBA president (1963–67) and commissioner (1967–75)
William J. Kennedy, American writer, winner of the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for fiction

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kennedy (surname).