Irish clan
The
O'Cahan
(
Irish
:
O Cathain
'descendants of Cahan') were a powerful
sept
of the
Northern Ui Neill
's
Cenel nEogain
in
medieval Ireland
. The name is presently
anglicized
as
O'Kane
,
Kane
and
Keane
.
The O'Cahan's originated in Laggan in the east of
County Donegal
and from there moved eastwards in the twelfth century, ousting the O'Connor from
Keenaght
in Derry. They held the lordship of Keenaght and Coleraine until the seventeenth century, to which it was commonly referred to as "O'Cahan's country". Under the sub-ordination of their kin, the
O'Neills
, they held the privilege of inaugurating the chief of the O'Neill by tossing a shoe over the new chief's head in acceptance of his rule.
There is also an unrelated sept of O'Cahan in the province of
Connacht
, the O'Cahan Ui Fiachra (
O Cathain Ui Fiachrach
). At first, O'Cahan held the title chief of Cenel Ianna. After expelling O'Drennan (
O Draighnean
), chief of Cenel Sedna, O'Cahan was henceforth known as chief of Cenel Sedna. The earliest recorded O'Cahan was Eoghan O'Cahan (
Eoghain Ua Cathain
), abbot of
Clonfert
(
Cluan-fearta-Brennainn
),
County Galway
, died 980 A.D.
Naming conventions
[
edit
]
The surname has been
anglicised
O'Cahan
,
Cahan
,
O'Kane
,
Kane
,
O'Keane
,
Keane
,
O'Kean
,
Kean
, and similar variations thereof.
Male
|
Daughter
|
Wife
(Long)
|
Wife
(Short)
|
O Cathain
|
Ni Chathain
|
Bean Ui Chathain
|
Ui Chathain
|
History
[
edit
]
The O'Cahan sept of
Keenaght Glengiven
first appear on record in 1138. A thirteenth-century chief of the family was
Cumee na Gall O'Cahan
. A heavily restored effigy at Dungiven Priory is sometimes associated with Cumee, although it appears to date to the last quarter of the fifteenth century, and seems to be that of a later member of the sept. Dunseverick Castle also formed part of the O'Cahan possessions until it was destroyed by Scottish troops under the command of
Robert Monro
during the
Irish Rebellion of 1641
.
[1]
The clan suffered a blow during the
battle of Drumderg
, where fifteen O'Cahan chieftains were slain in battle against the Normans and their gaelic allies.
[2]
Rory Dall O'Cahan
, an Irish
harpist
of the 17th century most famous as the composer of
Give Me Your Hand
, may have penned the popular Irish tune the "
Londonderry Air
", in order to lament the destruction of O'Cahan power.
[
citation needed
]
Consequently, it may have been originally called "
O'Cahan's Lament
".
[
citation needed
]
The music is best known as the tune of the song "
Danny Boy
".
[3]
By the late 16th-century, "O'Cahan's Country" became the county of Coleraine. The majority of O Cathain chiefs fled Ulster in the
Flight of the Earls
in 1607, and under the terms of
Surrender and regrant
they forfeited their lands to the English crown. During the subsequent
Plantation of Ulster
, County Coleraine along with parts of counties
Antrim
, Donegal, and
Tyrone
, were merged to form County Londonderry. After the
Flight of the Earls
in 1607,
Donnell Ballagh O'Cahan
, Chief of the O Cathain (and at one time knighted by the English Crown), was captured and sent to the Tower of London, where he died in 1626. There has been no Chief since.
See also
[
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]
External links
[
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]
References
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]
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