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Ó hEidirsceoil

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Ó hEidirsceoil

Ó hEidirsceoil, Gaelic-Irish surname, anglicised as Driscoll.

Overview

The surname derives from the forename Eidirsceol, who was alive in the early-to-mid 10th century. The word itself, eidirsceol, means "go-between" or "bearer of news".

The original Eidirsceol from whom descent is claimed is reputed to have lived in the mid 10th century.

The family are of Érainn, descent, specifically the Corcu Loígde population group. By the time the family began using the surname, the territory known as Corcu Loígde (roughly the same as the diocese of Ross) in south-west County Cork, was identified as their homeland, with the town of Baltimore been their seat. From the 12th century the Ó hEidirsceoil's were recorded as kings of Corcu Loígde.

Been driven so far south by the Gaelic Eóganachta and the Anglo-Normans, the family became expert sailors and pirates. According to John Grenham:

  • From the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries they struck an alliance with the Powers of Co. Waterford in their long feud with the burgesses and merchants of Waterford city, and many of their leaders were killed in battle on land and sea. One of the best known incidents occurred in 1413, when the Mayor of Waterford, Simon Wicken, arrived in Baltimore on Christmas Day and was invited to join in the Christmas festivities. He did, and enjoyed the company so much that he took O'Driscoll and his family back to Waterford, as prisoners. From the fifteenth century on, the family struggled to retain their lands and power against the English. By 1610, Baltimore had become an English port and there is some evidence that the family may have had a hand in the notorious pillage of the town by Algerian pirates in 1631; a year earlier there had been reports of one Cornelius O'Driscoll "an Irish pirate with his rendezvous in Barbary". [1]

    • They are described by Donnchadh Ó Corráin as follows:

  • In general, the seafaring peoples of the south and west coast — Ua hEtersceóil, Ua Muirchertaig, Ua Conchobair Chiarraige, Ua Domnaill of Corcu Baiscind, Ua Flaithbeartaig, Ua Dubda, and others served as commanders of the king's fleets. [2]

    • Though the landowners of the clan lost all of their possession during the 17th century, most of those bearing the name in Ireland are still to be found living in the old family homeland.

    Forenames associated with the family included Finn and Con/Mac Con. From the late medieval era, they were anglicized as Florence and Cornelius.

    References

    Ó hEidirsceoil Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA