Recorded in several forms including de Courcy, de Courcey, Decourcy, Courcey, Coursey, and possibly others, this is an Anglo-Irish surname of French origins. Probably introduced into England at or immediately after, the Norman Invasion of 1066, and into Ireland after the Invasion by King Henry 11nd in 1170, the name originates from the village of Courcy in the departement of Calvados, in Normandy. First recorded in the famous Domesday Book of 1086 with that of Richard de Curci of Oxford, and later in Lincoln in 1150, when Thomas de Curci appears in the Dane Law registers for that county, this is one of the rare names which has legitimately kept its 'de' preposition throughout the ages. The place name and hence the later surname, originally developed from the Roman word 'curtus,' meaning small or short. In Ireland the name achieved greater impact than in other countries. Sir John de Courcy was the leading figure in the province of Ulster from 1170, with Patrick de Courcy being the Chief Justice of the country in the year 1221. The family were also the lords of Kinsale, and the name became very prominent in West Cork, and particularly so in the town of Clonakilty.

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