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Geary Family History

Geary Surname Meaning

Irish (Cork): shortened Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Gadhra ‘descendant of Gadhra’ (see O'Gara). Irish: alternatively possibly a shortened form of McGeary.

English: from the Old French personal name Geri, ancient Germanic Geric from gēr ‘spear’ + rīc ‘power(ful)’.

English: nickname for a wayward or capricious person from Middle English ge(a)ry ‘fickle, changeable, passionate’. See Gear.

Possibly an altered form of Swiss German Gehri or Gehry, variants of Gehr.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


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Where is the Geary family from?

You can see how Geary families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Geary family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Geary families were found in USA in 1880. In 1891 there were 494 Geary families living in Leicestershire. This was about 21% of all the recorded Geary's in United Kingdom. Leicestershire had the highest population of Geary families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Geary surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
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What did your Geary ancestors do for a living?

In 1939, General Labourer and Unpaid Domestic Duties were the top reported jobs for men and women in the United Kingdom named Geary. 11% of Geary men worked as a General Labourer and 68% of Geary women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Geary were Retired and Housewife.

View Census Data for Geary | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1939

  • General Labourer
    11%
  • Carpenter joiner
    4%
  • Bricklayer
    4%
  • Retired
    4%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    68%
  • Unpaid Domestic
    3%
  • Incapacitated
    3%
  • Housewife
    2%

What Geary family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 125,000 census records available for the last name Geary. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Geary census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Geary

Passenger Lists

There are 15,000 immigration records available for the last name Geary. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the UK, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Geary immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 19,000 military records available for the last name Geary. For the veterans among your Geary ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Geary military records

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