The Berkerys of Tipperary

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While researching the Civil Survey of Tipperary a name that popped up in Upper Ormond was Birrahgra or various spellings. (Birragra, Birraghgra).

It seems that this name later became Berkery, a relatively rare name in Ireland that seems to be mainly confined to Tipperary in the 1901 and 1911 censuses with only 223 with that name in 1901 and 186 in 1911.

https://www.barrygriffin.com/surname-maps/irish/berkery/

From Barrygriffin.com

Looking at the Civil Survey the Birraghras or Berkerys own approximately 877 acres in Upper Ormond. 

They are included with the other larger and probably more well known surnames that own land in the barony such as Kennedy, Magrath, Butler, O'Meara, Bourke, Grace, Hogan, Morris, Ryan, Gleeson, O'Brien, McEgan / Egan. 

There are a few what I would say as less populous surnames such as Leamey, Curran, Tierney, Mullaghna? & Mackey. 

So what do we know about the Birraghra / Berkeys? 

The Last Lords of Ormond says this of them
"Next in interest in this barony come ten families of 'Birhagras' or 'MacBirragra'. The name is now anglicised to Berkery (often locally pronounced Berrec-ry) or Barragry. I regret that I have not been able to find anything dealing with the origin of this old Ormond family."

He mentions a funeral entry that records that a Hugh MacBrickarie was married to Joan O'Currine and their son Fiachra was married to the daughter of Daniel O'Kennedy of Lisheen, Kilkeary who was a significant individual at the time. 

From the Civil Survey we can see where their home townlands were and what lands they owned outside of this. (Red "Homelands" Green "Lands Owned" - Red & Green - both "Homeland & Land Owned".) 


By Derek Ryan & Openstreetmap

 

See the spreadsheet below here. 

Berkerys in the Civil Survey.xlsx

They are mainly to the east of Dolla and north of Templederry. Some of the land is low land but it looks like the majority of it is tending towards highland (particularly Lisgarrif).

Teig Birrahgra of Lisgariff is described as a Gent so that is more likely to be the head of the Berkerys and possible capital of the family. 

There was a suggestion that the Berkerys were Ultachs? 

Michael Hassett on Facebook commented that the Berkerys and Frahills were Ultachs and that the Frahills accompanied the O'Neills as educators to their children on their journey to the Battle of Kinsale. 

However John Grenhams website says that the Berkerys were "A family who were brehons to the O'Neills, but now found in Munster". 

I think that any Ultach origin can be discounted as the lands they owned in Civil Survey was inherited from their ancestors and so they must have been in the region much longer than the early 1600s (around the time of the Battle of Kinsale). If they were refugees from a war (which is what the Ultach story suggests) they could not have become landowners so quickly. 

One interesting piece of land that they are involved in is called Farrinnabrenagh. Generally Fearann land is land that is owned by the main chief in an area for his upkeep and could sometimes be given to his attainers such as law men, doctors etc. 

So what this Fearann refers to I'm not sure? I was not able to locate it as a townland or place on the maps. 

So the Berkerys own land in or beside what I would describe as a Kennedy dominated lands. They were described as being Brehons to the O'Neills. The McEgans are more popularly described as Brehons to the O'Kennedys. 
Could they provide a Brehon or law service to the Kennedys as well or maybe another prominent family in the area? If so why hasn't this been recorded historically or in folklore? 

If not something like this, how did they manage to retain their lands independently in the area?


Have any Berkery males carried out Y-DNA testing and what does that tell us? 

So lots of questions, I'm just putting out there out of curiosity. 






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