Leahy
An Irish surname usually understood as an Anglicized form of an old Gaelic family name, with forms like Lahey and Leahey.
The #3,280 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 28,032 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Leahy is an Anglicized Irish surname. Historical surname dictionaries connect it with Gaelic forms such as Ó Laochdha or related spellings, where the first element is usually linked with laoch, meaning 'hero' or 'warrior.' In older records the name appears in several spellings, including Lahy, Lahey, Leahey, and Leahy, reflecting inconsistent English spelling of Irish names.
History
The name is strongly associated with Ireland, especially in Munster, and appears frequently in 19th- and early-20th-century Irish surname studies. The many spellings in the records suggest a long period of Anglicization rather than a single fixed English form. In American records the surname is also found among Irish immigrant families.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Some older surname indexes group Leahy with several very similar Irish names, showing how fluid spelling could be before standardization.
From the historical record
“1079 LEAHY. Linighan. Biggane. 151, Loughren. Lahy. 117. 23-. 393, &c. Linnahan.”
— Varieties and Synonymes of Surnames and Christian Names in Ireland