
Origin of the Name Gilroy
The origin of the name
Gilroy was found in the allfamilycrests.com archives. Variants of the Irish name Gilroy include McGilroy, McElroy, McIlroy and Kilroy. These names are anglicized forms of the Gaelic Mac Giolla Rua sept that was located in County Fermanagh in Ulster Province.
A sept or clan is a collective term describing a group of persons whose immediate ancestors bore a common surname and inhabited the same territory. Irish septs and clans that are related often belong to even larger groups, sometimes called tribes.
The placename Ballymacilroy is found in County Fermanagh, their territory being on the east side of Lough Erne. This Gaelic name is taken from the words 'giolla' meaning 'lad' and 'rua' meaning 'red', probably meaning a red-haired youth. As Kilroy the name is mostly found in Connaught Province with the variant Kilroe found in County Roscomon.
The Gilroy coat of arms came into existence centuries ago. The process of creating coats of arms (also often called family crests) began in the eleventh century although a form of Proto-Heraldry may have existed in some countries prior to this. The new art of Heraldry made it possible for families and even individual family members to have their very own coat of arms, including all Gilroy descendants.