The Scanlon Name In Surname Dictionaries

Ó SCANNLÁIN—I—O Scanlaine, O Scanlan, O Scanlon, O Scandlon, Scanlan, Scanlon, Scandlon, &c.; 'descendant of Scannlán' (diminutive of Scannal); the name of several distinct families in different parts of Ireland, as: 

(1) of Sligo, who are the present-day representatives of the ancient family of Ó Scannail of Carbury (see above); 

(2) of Galway, a branch of the southern Ui Fiachrach and of the same stock as the O'Shaughnessys and O'Heynes; 

(3) of Cork, who were formerly erenaghs of Cloyne; and 

(4) of Fermanagh, who were erenaghs of Devenish. 

At the end of the 16th century, the name was found in all the counties of Munster, being specially common in Cork, Limerick and Kerry. It is now common in Munster and Connacht, but is only rarely met with in the other provinces.

Edward MacLysaght - Irish Families, Their Names, Arms & Orgins

(O) SCANLAN, O'Scannell

There are at least two quite distinct septs whose descendants are know known as Scanlan. One is Ó Scannláin of Munster and the other Mac Scannláin ofOriel (Louth), neither of which has retained the prefix O or Mac in modern times.  The latter are perpetuated in the place name Ballymacscanlon near Dundalk.  The widespread distribution of the O'Scanlans is indicated by the fact that there are six Ballyscanlans in Ireland as well as a Scanlanland and a Scanlan's in Ireland as well as a Scanlan's Island.  Two of these are in Co. Clare and one in Mayo, which lends color to the statement that there was also a sort Connacht sept of O'Scanlan.  Further evidence in support of this is supplied by the records of the Refistrar-General, which show that after the Kerry-Limerick-Cork are most Scanlan births are reported from Clare and Sligo.  In this connexion the returns of the 1659 census are interesting" in that year the majority of people called O'Scanlan and O'Scannell were located in those very areas.  At that time it would appear that O'Scannell was often used as a synonym of O'Scanlon even in Munster.  The "Composition Book of Connacht" (1585) uses the form Scanlan in its survey of Co. Sligo.  The MacScanlans appear to have almost died out as hardly an Scanlan births were reported from the provinces of Leister and Ulster.  The Scanlans belonging to Co. Sligo and Co. Donegal are really O'Scannells - an instance of a common name absorbing a rarer one - for example Most Rev. Patrick O'Scanlan, Bishop of Raphoe (afterwards Archbishop of Armagh 1262-1272), was also called O'Scannell.  A Tipperary-born bishop of modern times Dr. Lawrence Scanlan (1843-1915), Bishop of Salt Lake City, is remembered in America on account of his amicable relations with the Mormons of that place.  In Ireland the name is chiefly associated with a most tragic event, the Scanlan murder in Co Limerick in 1819, which was the theme of several novels and plays, the best known of this is The Colleen Bawn.  There were three Irish-American authors of vote, viz. John f. Scanlan (b. 1839), Co. Limerick Fenian and poet, his better-known brother Michael Scanlan (b. 1836 Limerick), author of Jackets Green, The Fenian Men etc' and William J. Scanlan (1855-1898), Actor, singer and song writer. Rt. Rev. Mgr. James Donald Scanlan (b. 1899)was Bishop of Dunkeld and Vicar Delegate to the U.S. Forces inn Britain.

Sir Robert E. Matheson - Special Report on Surnames in Ireland, 1901

Scanlan - See [Scanlon]

Scanlon  -Scandlon

              -[Scanlan]

              -Scanlen

              -Scanlin