Fahey Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Fahey last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
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Meaning and origin of the Fahey last name
Meaning of the Fahey last name: descendant of Fathach. Fahey is an Irish surname from Ó Fathaigh, "descendant of Fathach", a personal name perhaps meaning "giant" or linked with foundation. The family held land in south Galway around Loughrea. Guitarist John Fahey, a pioneer of American fingerpicking, carried this last name in the United States.
Arms associated with the Fahey name
Coats of arms associated with the Fahey surname follow Irish heraldry, each set out in a short blazon.
Get your full Fahey family history
This is only a glimpse of the Fahey story. The full Fahey history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Fahey coat of arms. Get the full Fahey report.
Fahey name FAQ
What does the Fahey name mean?
Descendant of Fathach. Common variants include Fahy, Faghy.
Where does the Fahey surname come from?
It originates in Ireland, and is also found in the United States, Canada and Australia.
Is there a Fahey coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Fahey coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: MacLysaght, The Surnames of Ireland; Patrick Woulfe, Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish Names and Surnames (1923).