Harney
An Irish surname, likely an Anglicized form of an older Gaelic name recorded in medieval Ireland.
The #6,341 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 57,430 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The name is most likely from an Irish Gaelic family name, with early forms recorded in medieval Irish records and later Anglicized as Harney. The exact Gaelic source is not perfectly certain in the older scholarship, but it is commonly treated as an anglicized Irish surname rather than an English occupational or locational name. Related Irish spellings in older sources show that the surname was adapted in several similar forms, including Hartney and Harnedy.
History
Lower notes the name in Irish records as early as 1325, showing that it was established in Ireland by the medieval period. Later Irish surname collections place Harney mainly in the south-west and south of Ireland, especially in Munster, and the name remains notably Irish in distribution. In modern times it spread widely through emigration, especially to English-speaking countries such as the United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A 19th-century source explicitly says Harney was already a name of Irish record by 1325.
From the historical record
“HARNEW. See Delanoy. HARNEY. The name of Herny or Har- ney is of Irish record in the rolls of Chan- cery from 1325. D'Alton. HARROLD. The Irish family suppose themselves to have been introduced into that country on its invasion by the Danes, which is very prol^ably the case. HASLER.* The name is said to be Ger-…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom