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 The Dempsey name, which is also found
spelt as Dempsie, Dimpsay or Dimpsey, is of Irish origin from the Irish
Gaelic o'dimpsaigh meaning "estimable" or "son of
the Proud". The Dempseys were descended from the O'Dempsey family,
Clan Maliere.
O'Dempsey, or O'Dimpsaigh
the old name that was translated "as strong as a rock"
"estimable" or "son of the Proud" in ancient
Ireland, suggests the eminence of the name. The O'Dempsey family was
reputedly founded by Rossa Failghe, the son of Cathoir Mor, King of
Ireland in 144 AD.
The O'Dempseys were of
the same descent as the O'Connors Failghe, being lords of Offaly (a
county in central Ireland) and sometimes styled Barons of Phillipstown (Daingean,
Co Offaly, the former seat of the O'Connors). The O'Dempseys, also
referred to as the Clan Maliere, were for long one of the powerful
families in the Province of Leinster. Their estates in Clan Maliere
extended on both sides of the River Barrow in Queen's County [now County
Laois or Laoghis] and King's County [now County Offaly]. The lands
comprised the baronies of Portnalinch in Laois and Upper Phillipstown in
Offaly.
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