Molloy or O'Molloy is an Irish surname, anglicised from Ó Maolmhuaidh, maolmhuadh meaning 'Proud Chieftain'. (See also
Malloy.) They were part of the southern
Uí Néill, the southern branch of the large tribal grouping claiming descent from
Niall of the Nine Hostages, the fifth-century king who supposedly kidnapped
St Patrick to Ireland. They held power over a large part of what is now
County Offaly, where the surname is still very common. A second family were the O Maoil Aodha, 'descendant of the devotee of (St) Aodh', from maol, literally 'bald', a reference to the distinctive tonsure sported by early
Irish monks. As well as Molloy, this surname has also been anglicised as Mulloy, Malloy, Maloy, 'Miley' and 'Millea'. The name arose in east
Connacht, in the Roscommon/east
Galway region, and remains numerous there today.
This page lists people with the
surnameMolloy. If an
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