DEMPSEY
FAMILY PAGE
(Genealogy)
Boring stuff unless your
name is Dempsey or you are related. The work on the familytree has been carried
out my sister Colette Medhurst, our genius of genealogy. So far we have 2 trees
(a bit like Two Sheds Jackson having 2 sheds) going back to the mid 1800's. As
you may have guessed the Dempseys are Irish with our branch seemingly
originating in County Mayo. There is a reference to a Dempsey being a notorious
sheep stealer (well, I suppose it could have been worse!). My father's mother
was a McDonald (of the 'ne'er trust a Campbell' Clan McDonald) so the
Celtic/Gaelic influence is there too. My mother's parents were McConville and
Melia so not a drop of English blood to be seen to be sure. I see myself as
English and support the national team (which is like supporting Burnley;
promises much but delivers little). Enough of my meanderings. Try these links
(you'll need Adobe Acrobat Reader as they are pdf format): Dempseys McDonald
Dempsey
Name
The
Dempsey name, which is also found spelt as Dempsie, Dimpsay or
Dimpsey, is of Irish origin from the Irish Gaelic o'dimpsaigh
meaning "estimable" or "son of the Proud". The
Dempseys were descended from the O'Dempsey family, Clan Maliere.
O'Dempsey,
or O'Dimpsaigh the old name that was translated "as strong as a
rock" "estimable" or "son of the Proud" in
ancient Ireland, suggests the eminence of the name. The O'Dempsey
family was reputedly founded by Rossa Failghe, the son of Cathoir
Mor, King of Ireland in 144 AD.The O'Dempseys were of the same
descent as the O'Connors Failghe, being lords of Offaly (a county in
central Ireland) and sometimes styled Barons of Phillipstown
(Daingean, Co Offaly, the former seat of the O'Connors). The
O'Dempseys, also referred to as the Clan Maliere, were for long one
of the powerful families in the Province of Leinster. Their estates
in Clan Maliere extended on both sides of the River Barrow in Queen's
County [now County Laois or Laoghis] and King's County [now County
Offaly]. The lands comprised the baronies of Portnalinch in Laois and
Upper Phillipstown in
Offaly.
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