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Bradley
(the sept of O Brollachain)
Few Irish surnames have been more barbarously maltreated as a result of the introduction of the English language into Ireland
than Ó Brollacháin, which for some extraordinary reason was generally given as its anglicised form the English name of Bradley,
though in a few places, notably in Co. Derry, it is quite rationally called in English O'Brallaghan. No doubt a proportion
of the Bradleys in Ireland are descendants of English settlers, but those who bear the name in the counties adjacent to Co.
Derry and also in Co. Cork have justification for believing that they are really O'Brallaghans, because it was in those areas
that the sept originated, the Cork line being a branch which in early times migrated southwards. Actually they are first heard
of in Co. Tyrone, the county adjacent to Co. Derry on its southern border. It is interesting to note that modern statistics
show that Counties Derry, Tyrone and Donegal are still the homeland of most Irish Bradleys, with Cork their main stronghold
in the south.
These Irish Bradleys are of true Celtic stock, being part of the Uí Neill tribal grouping, descendants of Niall of the
Nine Hostages. He was High King of Ireland from 377 to 404 AD.
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| Flag of the Province of Ulster |
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