Delaney
An Irish surname usually from Gaelic Ó Dubhshláine, meaning “descendant of Dubhshláine,” a personal name often glossed as “dark challenge” or “dark defiance.”
The #1,057 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 9,295 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Delaney is generally an anglicized Irish surname from Gaelic Ó Dubhshláine. The first element, dubh, means “dark” or “black,” while Sláine is an old personal name; together the name is commonly interpreted as “descendant of Dubhshláine.” Older writers sometimes tried to explain it in other ways, but the Irish Gaelic derivation is the standard one in later scholarship.
History
The name is associated especially with Ireland, and it appears in English-language records in several spellings, including Delany and Delanie. In 19th- and early-20th-century Irish surname studies, Delaney is usually grouped with other anglicized forms of Gaelic family names from Leinster and surrounding areas. The surname became well established in Ireland and later spread widely through emigration to Britain, North America, and Australia.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Woulfe’s Irish surname work lists Delaney alongside several spelling variants, showing how fluid Irish anglicization could be in historical records.
From the historical record
“p.n. Delaney. Fr. Delanney ; a p.11. Delaroe. Fr. Delarue ; a p.n. Delay. From the Fr. De la Hay a p.n. Dellar. A.S. Dealla; G. De!”
— British Family Names: their origin and meaning (2nd ed.)Notable people named Delaney
- Thomas Delaney (b. 1991)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.