Curran is Just a modern version of the old Irish name Corradh(Pronounced Corrah meaning spear). My father, Dermot said that when he was at school back in the 1920's(he was fortunate enough to go to an irish speaking school, quite a rarity in those days) He was referred to by his Irish teacher as Ui'Corradhain(Pronounced Oo'Curoin). Alot of people in my family seem to believe that the name originates from Curragh(like the racecourse in Ireland) meaning marsh. But then you could a also argue that it originates from the word currach, which is a type of old fishing boat. Or maybe even the word in Irish 'corran' meaning crescent. I will go with many book references and web references that Curran comes from Corradh! After all it is the more glamorous!
Curran is not the only modern version of Corradh, there are many of them, just from the top of my head, Curren, Currin, Kerins, Currans, Currane, Currant, O'Curran, Kirrane, Corhen, Corren, Corran.
The earliest Curran that I know of at the moment is Tigernan na Corradh mac Domhnaill O'Ruairc who was the father of Conchobar na Brmcor mac Tighernain O'Ruairc, who was king of Breifne from 1250 until 1257, an ancient province of Ireland. Just a small aside, my mothers name is O'Rorke, and she is a direct descendant of these guys.
Other notable currans in history include;
In the Middle Ages, the Currans were a family of distinguished ecclesiastics. Simon O Currin, a Dominican friar who died in 1302, served as Bishop of Kilfenora. Andrew O Curran, a Benedictine, was appointed prior of Glasscarrif in 1411. James O Corren was Bishop of Killaloe from 1526 to 1546
John Philpot Curran
Perhaps the most famous Currans in Irish history are John Philpot (J.P.) Curran and his daughter, Sarah Curran. J.P. (1750-1817) was born in Newmarket, County Cork, but his political career brought him to Dublin, where he studied at Trinity College. Curran settled his family in Rathfarnam and rose to prominence as an orator, patriot, and lawyer. He was a Protestant, but he earned his initial fame in protecting the rights of an ill-treated Catholic clergyman. During his career he defended many United Irishmen. His daughter Sarah (1781-1808) is known historically as a romantic and tragic figure. She was engaged to rebel leader Robert Emmet, who was executed after the rising of 1803. Because her engagement to a rebel risked the ruination of her father's career, Sarah was outcast from the Rathfarnam home, and was obliged to take refuge with friends in Cork. Curran later married, but it is said that she never recovered from the loss of Emmet, and died of a broken heart. Her story inspired the Thomas Moore ballad "She is Far From the Land", which laments: She is far from the land where her young hero sleeps / And lovers around her are sighing; / But coldly she turns from their gaze and weeps / For her heart in his grave is lying.
Eugene Curran(Gene Kelly)
Surprisingly, the most famous Irish American Curran is none other than legendary star Gene Kelly (1912-1996). Born Eugene Curran Kelly, this singer, dancer, choreographer, actor and director was the son of one Harriet Curran Kelly. Kelly's maternal grandfather moved to America from County Clare in the 1800s. His dancing skill revolutionized movie musicals, and his 1952 hit Singin' in the Rain is one of the finest and most loved screen musicals
Other Currans have also impacted the performing arts. San Franciscans celebrate the thriving Curran Theater, founded in 1922 by Homer Curran (d. 1952). Sean Curran (b. 1962) is a choreographer and modern dancer who got his start by training in traditional Irish step dancing. A former member of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, he now heads up the Sean Curran Dance Company. He won a Bessie Award in 1996 for performance and choreography. His father, John Curran, hosts The Sound of Erin, a Boston radio show, and is a founding member of the Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann branch in Boston
Curran artists also include Pearl Gildersleeve Curran (1875-1941), who brought Irish music to the mountains of Colorado. This accomplished pianist and violinist also worked as a composer. Charles Courtney Curran (1861-1942) was a Kentucky-born impressionist painter
The monastic Currans of medieval Ireland must have passed on a penchant for the faith to their Irish-American descendants. John Joseph Curran (1859-1936) was the son of Irish immigrants from County Mayo, Ireland. Before becoming a Roman Catholic priest in 1887, he began his working life at the age of eight, as a slate picker in the Pennsylvania coal mines, where his older brother also worked. Curran rose to prominence because of his sympathies with the coal miners. He even served as an intermediary between the White House and the United Mine Workers Union during industry disputes. During those years, he became close to President Theodore Roosevelt, who described Curran as a "first-class type of priest, the kind of priest needed in a democracy
Charles E. Curran is another Roman Catholic priest. A professor and writer, he stirred controversy in the Catholic Church during the 1980s for his liberal views on sexual ethics. Other current notable Irish-American Currans include Denis Curran, the Director and President (International) of Bank and Ireland Asset Management, and double honoree of Irish America's "Wall Street 50." John P. Curran, President of Curran Capital Management, was also named to the "Wall Street 50" Quote from article by Sarah Curran, www.irishcentral.com.
Other Currans of note include, Kevin Curren, a top level tennis player between 1981 and 1991, whose most notable rise to glory was to reach the finals at Wimbledon three times. On one occasion he reached it by beating Stephan Edburg in the heats, John Mcenroe in the quarter finals, Jimmy Connors in the Semi finals, to be beaten by Boris Becker in the finals.
Alex Curran Gerrard, Famous WAG and papparazzi magnet, married to soccer player Steve Gerrard.
Tony Curran, actor, most famous role being the invisible man in the league of extrodinary gentlemen
Brittany Curran, American TV actress.
In Film
Nick Curran, Character in Basic Instinct(Played by Michael Douglas)
Jenny Curran, Character in Forrest Gump
Places
Currane, Kerry, Ireland
Currans, Kerry, Ireland
Four coats of arms with the surname Curran:
ReplyDeletehttps://coadb.com/surnames/curran-arms.html