Twomey
An Irish surname, usually anglicized from a Gaelic family name linked to the Toomey/Twomey clan in Cork and Kerry.
The #9,949 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 95,145 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Twomey is generally treated as an Anglicized Irish surname, historically written in forms such as O'Twomey, Toomey, Twoomey, and Tuomy. The name is usually connected with the Irish Gaelic family name O'Tuama, though 19th-century sources differ in how they analyze the older form. In practice, the modern surname is best understood as a Gaelic Irish clan name that developed several English spellings.
History
Historical sources place the name mainly in Cork, with smaller representation in Kerry, and later records show it spreading into other English-speaking regions. The surname appears in variant forms in Irish and Anglo-Irish records, and American directories also preserve Twomey as an established immigrant family name. Modern bearers often share the same Irish origin as the better-known Toomey spelling.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A 1901 Irish surname study lists Twomey as a distinct family name and gives it as one of the Cork-based surnames being tracked at the time.
From the historical record
“2001 TWOMEY. M'Avinchy. 385. Weadock. 16. Treanor. 256. Toomey. 2037”
— Varieties and Synonymes of Surnames and Christian Names in Ireland