HANLON
**Hanlon** is a surname of Irish provenance that originates from the Gaelic patronymic Ó hAnluain, which translates to “descendant of Anluan”. The personal name Anluan is traditionally understood to be a compound of an, meaning “great”, and luan, meaning “warrior” or “champion”. Consequently, the surname conveys the sense of a lineage tied to a great warrior.
The Hanlon sept was historically concentrated in the northern province of Ulster, particularly within County Armagh, where they held lands in the baronies of Oneilland and Orior. Their chiefs were recognised as lords of Orior for centuries. During the plantation of Ulster in the early seventeenth century, the family was saved from total ruin by a policy of conciliation; however, they ultimately suffered the same dispossession as many Gaelic Catholic aristocratic families in the late seventeenth century.
One of the most acclaimed bearers of the name was Rev. John O'Hanlon (1821–1905), who authored the respected series Lives of the Irish Saints. Church registers record the marriage of Margaret Hanlon and James Garner in London in 1789, providing documentary evidence of the surname’s presence outside Ireland in the eighteenth century.
The earliest confirmed record of the name appears as O'Hanlon, Chief of East Ulster in the Records of the English Expeditionary Forces in Ireland, dated 1493 during the reign of King Henry V, who is also known as Henry Tudor (1485–1509).
Symbolically, the Hanlon coat of arms consists of a green shield with a boar passant ermine on a mount in base proper. The crest is a lizard displayed in green. This heraldic device is often cited in contemporary genealogical documentation of the family.
Due to emigration during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the surname Hanlon spread beyond Ireland to the United States, Canada, and Australia. In the United States it is especially common in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New England, and Chicago, while in the United Kingdom it can still be found in significant numbers in Liverpool, Manchester and London.
Variations of the name arise from regional spelling differences and anglicisation. Common forms include O'Hanlon, Hanlin, Hanlan, Handlon and Hanly. Within single family lines, variations can appear as records were often transcribed phonetically.
Typical given names associated with the Hanlon surname
Male
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Thomas
- William
Female
- Catherine
- Christine
- Elizabeth
- Emma
- Gill
- Helen
- Jane
- Julie
- Karen
- Margaret
- Mary
- Patricia
- Sarah
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Hanlon in...
Braille
⠓⠁⠝⠇⠕⠝
Morse
.....--..-..----.
Semaphore
There are approximately 5,836 people named Hanlon in the UK. That makes it roughly the 1,620th most common surname in Britain. Around 90 in a million people in Britain are named Hanlon.
Origin: Celtic
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: Ireland
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: Gaelic
Famous people named Hanlon
- Paul Hanlon - Scottish football player
- Ritchie Hanlon - Football player and manager
- Michael Hanlon - Science writer (1964 to 2016)
- John Hanlon - Sprinter (1905 to 1983)
- Wally Hanlon - Football player (1919 to 1999)
- Jimmy Hanlon - Football player (1917 to 2002)
- Henry Hanlon - Roman Catholic archbishop (1862 to 1937)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.