Good Enough For Today

This is always an interesting time of year. It doesn’t really matter where you are or what you do for a living, you quickly find out who around you has even a trace of Irish ancestry. And, of course, you also find out who are the ones that see this as an opportunistic excuse to show up to work the following morning with soft voices, light shuffling feet, and sunglasses nearly implanted on their face. It really is an interesting day on the calendar to both experience and to observe (in more ways than one).

Until recently, it was never really a day that caught my attention. There were year when it even passed by without me knowing. Now having a better grasp and understanding of my own family history, I enjoy seeing the festivities and hearing the multitudes of stories of the places from which families originated. Given the long history and pride that is found in Irish families, it is no surprise to find my family’s original surname, McKenna, listed on Wikipedia:

McKenna, also MacKenna, Mckenna or Mackenna, is the anglicized form of the Gaelic Irish surname "Mac Cionaoith", also spelt Mac Cionaodha or Mac Cionnaith, meaning "son of Cionnaith.

The historical lineage of the McKennas lies in Trough, County Monaghan, Ulster, Ireland, where they were "The Lords Of Truagh" and the McKenna coat of arms can be seen on many of the graves from members of the family.

In North Kerry Mckenna is considered to come from Mac Ginea. The Cionnath, Cionaoith, Cionaddha forms are considered there to be sources of names like Kenny, Kenney and Kennedy.

It is fascinating to see the original family surname so closely tied to a specific geographic location in Ireland. This is particularly important given the limited details that we have about my family’s original Irish ancestor whom we believe was named William and who arrived in the United States sometime between 1840 and 1860. We don’t know exactly when or where he came into this country or precisely from where he came but we at least have some idea from which part of the country the family originated.

While this is the most recent immigrant on either side of my family, it is proving to be one of the more difficult to pin down both due to the discrimination of the Irish at that point in history and also the sheer fact that the name is so incredibly common. But, on this day it really doesn’t matter all that much. We know that we have Irish blood and from where our family hails. Today, and most days, that is enough. But it would be nice to know a little bit more.

Finding The Kelly Green Leaves

There are certain days during the year when everyone seems to assume the same nationality for one reason or another. Some people do it because they like the color green, some because they use it as an excuse to drink, and others because they just enjoy the atmosphere of the day. However, for many of us it is an excuse to look deeper into our roots. St. Patrick’s Day is probably the best example of this community participation.

Being Irish was not really something that was a focus for me growing up. In fact, nationality was never really something that was a focus for anyone in my family. We were all born in the United States, our parents were, our grandparents, and our great grandparents so the tether to the boat was quite long. It wasn’t until we really started taking a closer look in recent years (at least for me) that I became more interested and connected to the various heritages that I carry with me.

It started on my dad’s side as I still remember driving down to Virginia in the summer of 1987 and spending the long weekend at the family reunion. This was a little different than the typical reunion that comes to mind as each person in attendance could trace back to the original German/French ancestor that arrived in Philadelphia on 27 October 1764. Good luck trying to figure out how you’re related to each person.

We never knew much about all the other branches on my dad’s side but that has developed substantially over the past decade or so. There is far more than just German blood in that tree as there are lines across various parts of Europe as well as deep native roots her in the United States. However, while there is an assortment of nationalities, there is only a faint touch of Irish blood on that side.

Much of my Irish heritage comes from my mom’s side of the family and, growing up, we were never certain that some of our leaves were a vibrant Kelly green. Once we put a few pieces together and determined that the original surname was McKenna there was little doubt that the family’s arrival in the middle of the 19^th century was from Northern Ireland. Tracing your Irish roots back to the potato famine isn’t very unique but at least now we know.  

Like my dad’s side, my mom’s side of the family is also an interesting mix coming from various parts of Europe. And just like the German blood is thick on one side, the Irish blood is thick on the other. Actually, given the tendencies of each, it might be pretty watered down. So have a drink… you may find out one day that you’re Irish. Sláinte!