Molloy — The Proud Chieftain

Molloy comes from Ó Maolmhuaidh, combining maol (here in the older sense of ‘chief’) with muadh, ‘proud’ or ‘noble’. The family ruled Fir Cheall, a territory in the west of County Offaly, for centuries as one of the smaller but most persistent Gaelic lordships.

Not every Gaelic dynasty needed to rule a province to leave a name that lasted — Fir Cheall was small, and the Molloys held it anyway.

Irish form: Ó Maolmhuaidh