This interesting name is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and is a locational surname deriving from any of the places called "Healey" in Lancashire, Northumberland and Yorkshire. Early recordings of the placename include "Hayleg" and "Helei" in Lancashire, "Heley" in Northumberland, and "Helagh" or "Helay" in Yorkshire. All the places share the same meaning and derivation, which is "the high clearing or wood", derived from the Old English pre 7th Century "heah", high, with "leah", thin wood, glade, clearing in a wood. Locational surnames were mostly acquired by those former inhabitants of a place who had moved to another area, and were best identified by the name of their birthplace. The modern surname can be found as Healey, Healy, Heeley and Heely. In some cases, the name may be Irish in origin, from the Anglicized forms of either of the Gaelic names "O'hEilidhe", descendant of the claimant, or "O'hEalaighthe", descendant of the ingenious one. The marriage of John Healy and Jeane Wood was recorded at St. Katherine-by-the-Tower, London, on January 5th 1681. One, Richard Healy, married Anne Long at the Holy Rosary Church, Limerick, on September 3rd 1963. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Philip de Heleye, which was dated 1275, The Norfolk Hundred Rolls, during the reign of King Edward 1, "The Hammer of the Scots", 1272 - 1307. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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