MAC GIOLLA IASACHTA

The surnames Lysaght, MacLysaght, Lysaught, Lycett, Lycette, Lysett, Licet, Lysaight, and other variations thereof, all derive from a common origin - a single ancestor who first used the surname Mac Giolla Iasachta.

It is my hope that as many as possible of the branches of the Lysaght family tree can be reconstructed to give a global picture of all Lysaght descendants, past and present. This page offers a brief background to the history of the Lysaght surname and outlines the goals of the "Lysaght Project" as well as providing links to Lysaght information and a means by which Lysaght researchers with common interests can contact each other.

To contribute to the Lysaght Project or for help with your research, please email me.

Our ancestry goes back to the time of the Vikings, but the name Lysaght began much later. The first man on the Lysaght tree was Lachtna mac Cuircc - no date, no parents but it is reasonable to assume that his father's first name was Cuircc. Lachtna's son was Lorcan mac Lachtna who was King of Munster in 934 AD, so he must have been born before that date and Cuircc some time in the 8th Century. The Lysaght tree then progressed through various Kings, and the High Kingship of Ireland, including the legendary Brian Boru (variant spellings of his name). Here begins the O'Brien or au Briain name. Our marvellous and bloodthirsty ancestry!

Disputes over inheritance and subsequent wars followed. There is a tree showing the line of descent until we come to three brothers who were supposed to share the kingdom, splitting it between them. The eldest brother imprisoned the second and, as the younger had died, he (the elder) ruled in his own right. At this time the Norwegians controlled many of the islands off the coast of Britain and had established strongholds in a number of Irish towns - the most important being Dublin. They wanted a regent on the Isle of Man, so the elder (King Muirchertach ua Briain of Ireland and Munster) sent the son of his deceased youngest brother (and our direct ancestor) - Domnail or Donal to be the regent. Donal was a tyrant, and seized the throne of Man in his own right, but was forcibly removed from office after less than two years. Donal then went to the Inner Hebrides, as invader, and became their King. He failed there also and was driven off. Some say he did not even get to land. Donal went back to mainland Ireland and here the story is unclear as to whether he was helping defend his King uncle, or trying to reclaim his own throne. Regardless, Donal was killed by Connaughts in 1115 AD.

Donal had a son, possibly born on the Isle of Man or the Inner Hebrides, whose name was Shane. The Irish, and particularly the ua Briain (O'Brien) clan thought him an outsider, a foreigner, on iasachta! Shane's son, Teige (Teighe or Tadc) was son of the outsider/foreigner, Mac giolla iasachta. Hence begins the earliest direct evidence for the MacLysaght and Lysaght line - and also its move away from royal inheritance, whilst the O'Brien line continued as Kings.

Published sources provide one line direct from Teige to the 16th century and a man named Conor McGillesachta - and this is accepted by Chief Herald's office. From this point there is a chart compiled by Edward MacLysaght and sanctioned by his office as chief herald. Today, the Lysaght surname and its derivatives can be found in Ireland, Australia, England, New Zealand, Austria, and America.

At the current time the Lysaght tree is fragmented, with many branches which as yet are unattached to the main tree. It is the aim of this project to connect as many of these widely dispersed branches of the Lysaght family to each other and to the main tree as possible. Thus the scope of this project includes all variants of the Lysaght surname with the ultimate aim of producing a history plus charts down to the present day.

The creation of a world tree could never be achieved by one person, so the success of this project depends on people contributing their research so that progress can be made. In addition, those with common ancestors or research interests can be put in contact with one another, and pool their resources to increase the body of "Lysaght" knowledge. By tracking down as many of the immigrant lines emanating out of Ireland and into the new world as possible we can begin to piece together the fragments and create a comprehensive picture of the Lysaght family worldwide.

If you have information which you would like to contribute to the project or have a query concerning your own research please contact me.

In order to understand the significance of the origin of Lysaght as a name, it is important to grasp the concept of why and how naming systems developed. It was not just a matter of finding a convenient way of identifying, or attracting the attention of a particular person.

Names are thought to have originated in order to associate people with a particular tribe, clan, place, village, and/or to identify their occupation, and/or to define physical features. As a word, "clan" is a derivative of the Latin planta, which means "a shoot, a cutting", and was introduced into the English language via its Gaelic form: "clann", meaning "children, offspring, family, stock". The word clan" came to be applied to a tribe, race, group, class or set of people, and/or one of the familial groups of Alba, the precursor to the country known as Scotland.

In Scotland, clan names developed from the classification of the Scots, who came from the north of Ireland, separately from the picts, the earliest Celtic inhabitants of Scotland, as well as from the names of the provinces, and their governing Mormaert, or King, gradually being adopted as surnames - but, again, clan names developed around individuals as a consequence of their feats, etc. However, through continuing the Irish system, the Scots divided the clan into "septs" (division of tribe); in Scotland, clan septs being three classes. They were defined as the important clansmen who were related by blood to the principal line, old families who were frequently related to their adoptive family and often retained their own name, and individuals or groups who sought protection of the clan yet either retaining their own name or adopting that of their protector.

Historically, though, the Chinese are considered to have been the first people to utilise surnames, circa 2852 BC, under Emperor Fushi. In that country, the surname was derived from the sacred Chinese poem Po-Chia-Hsing. In accordance with Chinese custom, the surname is followed by a generation name, chosen from a familial poem; those names were followed by the third or given name.

Similarly the Romans, who began by using only one name, adopted the use of three names. The first name, in this culture, was the given name, followed by the clan name, then the family name. Occasionally a fourth name was assigned to indicate some outstanding deed or event.

In Europe during the Middle Ages, the use of a single given name was prevalent, but gave way to adding a second name to distinguish between individuals, utilising a place name (St. Francis of Assisi), a physical characteristic (Lambert Le Tort = lambert the Twisted), occupation (Piers Plowman), or the use of the father's name. Prior to the advent of fixed surnames the Irish used a patronymic naming system in which the prefix Mac denoted "son of" and Nic indicated "daughter of". Using this system, surnames changed from generation to generation, reflecting the father's first name. A similar system was used in Wales and still exists in some parts of the world today.

Eventually the use of a second name became customary and, by the 12th Century, was not hereditary or familial in origin. Fixed surnames were now becoming increasingly accepted and were often derived from a common ancestor from whom all later generations traced their descent. Some of the earliest in Ireland included the prefix "O" or in its older form "Ua" meaning "grandson of" and of course, "Mac".

Over time however, names changed. There are many reasons for that change. People, who do not like their name, or who wish to distance themselves from other relatives, or who simply do not wish to be associated with a name, will directly change it. Not only that, but depending on the prevailing illiteracy rate, often a name is recorded at a church, or registry office in the manner in which it sounded to the recipient. In Ireland, for instance, a reduction in the literacy rate occurred between 1841 and 1851 due to the Great Famine causing a reduction in the number of educational facilities, and through emigration. As far as has been feasible, the possibility of such changes has been taken into account both in seeking the origin of our name, and in the construction of the various family tree branches.

Bellow I am developing a list of researchers and the places in which they are researching their Lysaght (and variant names) ancestors. Click on the hyperlinks to send them an email or to view their web site.

Location(s)	Researchers	Links
Stonepark, Co. Limerick, Ireland Warwick & Barcaldine, Queensland, Australia Ballarat, Victoria, Australia Chicago, Illinois, US	Joanne Mitchell	My Lysaght family
County Clare, Ireland Sandhurst (Bendigo), Victoria, Australia then to New Zealand	Robyn
Ennistymon, Co. Clare, Ireland Maitland/Dungog, New South Wales, Australia	Gary Carruthers Bruce Wright	http://www.ancestry.com
Doon, Co. Limerick, Ireland Ontario, Canada Utah, US Chicago, Illinois, US Queensland, Australia	Jim Lycett Joanne Mitchell
Askeaton, Co. Limerick, Ireland New South Wales, Australia
Co. Clare Ireland San Fransisco, California, US	Bill Lycette
Co. Clare, Ireland London, England
Co. Limerick Kelso, New South Wales, Australia
Co. Clare, Ireland Quorn, South Australia Thebarton, South Australia
Killard, Co. Clare, Ireland Camden, New South Wales, Australia
Kilshanny, Co. Clare, Ireland Geraldine, New Zealand Gisborne, Australia	Kelvin Lysaght
Tipperary Town, Co. Tipperary, Ireland Ashburton, New Zealand	Kelvin Lysaght
Liscannor, Co. Clare, Ireland Boston, US	JoAnn Gavin-Yuska
Limerick, Limerick, Ireland
Mallow, Co. Cork, Ireland Bristol, England New South Wales, Australia
Co. Clare, Ireland US
Co. Clare, Ireland US
Ireland New York, US

If you would like to have your name and details added to this list, just email me!

Below is a list of links containing transcripts of records which include the Lysaght surname or its variants. See if your ancestors are there too!

Deaths (Lysaght deaths listed in the index of civil records 1864 - 1925, Ireland)

Births (Lysaght births listed in the index of civil records 1886-1889, Ireland)

Irish land records (extracts from the Tithe Applotment, Griffith's Valuation and the Cancelled Land Books pertaining to

Clare library (including Griffith's Valuation for Co. Clare and the 1901 census - in progress)

Valuation for Counties Limerick, Galway, Mayo, Roscommon and Leitrim - a work in progress - and more)

If you know of another link which you think should be added to this list then email me with the URL!

Discuss your research with other interested parties. Post a question or state your Lysaght interests on the: