Hanley — The Noble One

Hanley comes from Ó hAinle, built on ainle, ‘handsome’ or ‘noble’. The family were established in County Roscommon, and unlike many of their neighbours the name never attached itself to a contested chiefdom or a border fight — it simply travelled, generation to generation, as a plain compliment kept as a surname.

A compliment kept as a surname for eight centuries — whatever the original ancestor looked like, the family clearly thought it worth remembering.

Irish form: Ó hAinle