This is an Anglicized form of the Old Gaelic name "O' Scolaidhe" or "O' Scolaire". The Gaelic prefix "O" indicated "male descendant of", plus "Scolaide", a Crier, i.e. one whose duty it was to announce important forthcoming events, or "Scolaire", a student. Originally a Co. Westmeath Clan, the Scullys were driven by Anglo-Norman pressure to Munster, circa 1170. One branch of the family settled in Lorrha (North Tipperary), and another established itself in South Tipperary, near Cashel. Clan members were interred by the famous Rock of Cashel and have a memorial there called Scully's Cross. Today, the name is widespread in Counties Cork and Tipperary. Vincent Scully (1810 - 1871) was an Irish political writer and graduate of Trinity College, Dublin, who was called to the Irish Bar (1840); he was also an M.P. for Cork (1852 - 1857). Michael Scully aged 30 yrs., was a famine immigrant into New York in May 1846. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of O' Scolaidhe which was dated circa 1100, in the "Ancient Records of Westmeath", during the reign of High Kings of Ireland "with opposition", 1022 - 1166. 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.

© Copyright: Name Origin Research 1980 - 2024