Irish naming convention can be used as a powerful tool to analyze and predict family names and aid in the search for family units in Irish records in the mid-to-late 1800s. Susan will use a case study from an Irish family to illustrate how this can be done.

Thomas Delaney was the father of Catherine “Kate” Delaney who married Henry Burge on 5 November 1878 in Dublin, Ireland. Catherine was born about 1860 - 62 in Queen’s County (present day County Laois) in Ireland and died 24 March 1909 in Dublin. To learn more about Thomas, evidence was gathered from researching the life and family of his daughter Kate and her husband Henry. The evidence identified a specific geographical location to focus the search for records for Thomas. This case study shows how Irish naming convention can be used as a powerful tool to analyze and predict family names and aid in the search for family units in Irish records in the mid- to late 1800s.