From the lands of Kelly, near Arnbroath, Angus. There is another Kellie near Pittenweem, Fife, but the references point to the former locality as the source of the surname. John de Kelly was abbot of Arnbroath, 1373 (APS., I, p. 197). Waulter of Kylle coming to the Scots hostages in England had a safe conduct in 1424 (Bain, IV, 961). David Celle was nineteenth abbot of Cambuskenneth, 1445—63. William Kelle held land in Kyntor, Aberdeenshire, 1498 (REA., I, p. 340), and James Kelle was notary public in diocese of St. Andrew, 1526 (CMN., 30). (2) A family named Kelle, long resident at Dunbar, apparently derived their name from an old spelling of Kello, which see, which hardened into a separate surname. Cudbert Kelle was tenant of Eistbarnis of Dunbar, 1559 (ER., XIX, p. 401), and rendered to Exchequer the accounts of the burgh of Dunbar, 1563 (ibid., p. 223). In 1590 Alexander Kellie was bailie of Dunbar (RPC., IV, p. 481). Captain John Kellie was retoured heir in certain lands in Berwickshire, 1659 (Retours, Berwick, 310), and Nicol Kellie was burgess of Dunbar, 1688 (RPC., 3. ser. XII, p. 253). (3) Convallus de Kelle, who witnessed an instrument of sasine of the lands of Mernys and Netherpollok, 1454 (Pollok, I, p. 176), most probably derived his name from the lands of Kelly in the parish of Innerkip, Renfrewshire (mentioned in the reign of James III). (4) A surname found in Galloway. For origin see under Mackelly.

(Celtic) 1 War; Warrior [Irish and Gaelic ce(a)llach] This name, which is very common in the Isle of Man, is usually a contraction of the filial form, MacCe(a)llaigh (Son of Ce(a)llach), or of the nepotic form, O’Ce(a)llaigh.

2 belonging to Kelly or Kellie (Scotland) = the Wood, Forest [Gaeliccoille]

“Wood” or “Grove” - (Celli) in Erse.

(Irish) Grandson of Ceallach (contention).

The Kelleys were in old times resident in the parish of that name in Devonshire, and the Irish Kellys, now very numerous, bear the same arms. According to the genealogy in B.L.G., the Kellys of Kelly "may look back beyond the Conquest and derive themselves from the ancient Britons!" Mr. Shirley says: "Kelly is a manor in the hundred of Lifton, about six miles from Tavistock. The manor and advowson have been in the family at least from the time of Henry II. and here they have uninterruptedly resided since that very early period." Noble and Gentle Men, p. 59. The similar name Kellie is a diminutive of Charles. See Kell.

Local: from the village of Kelly in Renfrewshire.

As Cornish names, from kelly, kelli, the grove.

(Gaelic and Welsh.) A grove, generally of hazel. Kill or Cille, in the Gaelic and Celtic, denotes a church.

Contracted from Mac Cealiaigh, 'Ceallach’s Son' (ceallach, 'war, strife’).

Death of Ceallach, son of Maelcobba in the Brugh, A.d. 654.' ‘Ceallach, Joint Monarch of Ireland, died a.d. 656.' The name is as common in the Isle of Man as it is in Ireland. Connell Mageoghan, who translated the Annals of Clonmacnoise, in 1627, gives the following account of the O’Kellys, under a.d. 778: ‘Though the O’Kellys are so common everywhere that it is unknown whether the dispersed parties in Ireland of them be of the families of O’Kelly, of Connaught, or Brey, ... so as scarce there is a few parishes in the Kingdom, but hath some one or other of these Kellys'.

A location name in Renfrew. Or Irish O’Ceallach; a personal name.

The Kellys are one of the oldest of West of England families. They have been seated in the Devonshire parish of Kelly near the Cornish border, since the 12th century, and have held the manor and advowson since that time (L. and P.). In the 13th century John de Kelli held the manor of Hevetruwe or Heavitree (H. R.), which was sold by Mr. Kelly in 1773 (Risdon's "Devonshire"). The surname is also established in. Cornwall where we find an estate named Great Kelly in the parish of Egloshayle; whilst Kelly Bray is a Cornish village.

Normally the surname Kelly comes from the Gaelic O’Ceallaigh. Apart from this fact the origins of the name Kelly-at least in Ireland, where it is most numerous-are obscure. One possible derivation is from the Gaelic word ‘ceallach’ which means ‘conflict, strife or war’. If this is so, Kelly would be a nickname, the original Kelly probably achieving renown as a great fighter.

Kellys are found all over Ireland-and indeed, with emigration, all over the world. (From Boston and New York to Sydney, the local telephone directories have pages of Kellys.) The main family clan of the Kellys is native to mid-Galway and south Roscommon, but other separate family clans have their origins in Leix, Wicklow, Meath and Derry.

Kellys also come from the Isle of Man and Scotland-but almost all of these are due to early emigration. Exceptions are rare, but nonetheless these do exist. In Scotland the name Kelly is sometimes a place name, being given to natives of the town of Kelly in Angus and to those from the village of Killie in Fife. These places get their names from the Scots Gaelic or the Cornish words for ‘woods’. It is also just possible that the Irish Kellys-at least in part-derive their name from a similar source in Irish Gaelic. In this case the Irish name could also be a place name, rather than the more heroic nickname. Kelly is also an old surname in Devon. In the Pipe Rolls for Devon in 1194 one Warin de Kelly is listed, named after the Devon village, and this is the first note of a Kelly in English records.

In 1888 James Kelly, the Liverpool wife-murderer, escaped from Broadmoor, the celebrated top-security prison for mental patients in Berkshire. He did so by making a passkey from a corset spring. After his escape he lived in Paris, then in New York for many years, eluding all attempts to recapture him. Finally, he returned in 1928 to the gates of Broadmoor and asked for readmission. This was granted, and he died an inmate in 1930. No one else has ever escaped and remained free from Broadmoor for anything approaching this period.

Helen Adams Keller (1880—1968) became blind, deaf and dumb as a baby. By sheer persistence and with the devoted help of Anne Sullivan, she overcame these overwhelming handicaps to graduate cum laude from Radcliffe College, Cambridge (US). She became an inspiration to many similarly handicapped, and her autobiography, The Story of My Life (1902), remains widely read.

The sixteenth-century alchemist’s assistant, Edward Kelley, claimed that he could confer with the angels by use of the magic crystals belonging to his master, John Dee. Kelley eventually persuaded his master to adopt a community of wives.

HMS Kelly was the first command of Lord Louis Mountbatten (1900—79). Later to become Viceroy of India, Earl Mountbatten earned the undying respect of his men as a result of his bravery at the time of the engagement during which HMS Kelly was finally sunk. He knew the name of every man on board, and refused rescue before his wounded shipmates had been assisted.

The first full-length film, The Story of the Kelly Gang, was made in Australia in 1906.

The United Kingdom has towns called Kelly and Kelly Bay. Other countries with name-related towns include Australia (Kelly), the US (3 Kellys), South Africa (Kelly’s View) and Ireland (Kelly’s Grove). There are Kelly rivers in Alaska and Australia and Kelly lakes in Angola and Canada, as well as Kelly Hills in Australia.

With about 58,000 namesakes Kelly is the 2nd most popular surname in Ireland. There are over 16,000 Kellys in Scotland where it is 40th in popularity. (The name is not common enough throughout England and Wales to be counted separately.) Around the world Kellys are most common in Canberra (one in 354 families), Sydney (one in 593) and Ottawa (one in 637). The United States has more Kellys than the entire population of Hull-an estimated total of just under 275,000 makes this their 61st most popular surname.