THE SNODDY CLAN.

Variant spellings: Snoddie, Snoddagh, Snoddah, Snowday

GAELIC FORM: Snoideach.

The Snoddy clan are of Scottish Lowland origin. A branch resettled in Co Antrim in 1493 as dependants of the Mac Donnells of the Glens. Families and small clans that lived among the Mac Donnells of the Glens were allied with them from earlier times in Scotland. Allied or dependant clans were obliged to fight under the Mac Donnells of the Glens when needed. However, the Snoddys were simple farmers and we have no records of them taking up arms.

Ballysnod was named after the Snoddy family. It is part of the parish of Inver which also includes the townlands of Browndod, Carnduff and Inver. All these townlands have an early connection with the Snoddys in Ireland.

The Snoddy surname is a variant of Snodgrass. Snodgrass derives from the lands of Snodgrass at Irvine in south west Scotland. The meaning is ogten given as from English snoad 'smooth grass, a clearing'. However, we have Gaelic snoidhte 'hewn, to cut, to level'. The Gaelic form used in Scotland supports this....Snoideach. A person who cuts grass is known as snoi(dh)teach/snoi(dh)deach and this word lost the silent 'dh' to give us Snoideach. Also, it is well known that they were farmers in Scotland and as well as the Irish branch under the Mac Donnells of the Glens. The Snoddys are of Brythonic Celtic origin and share DNA with many east Ulster Irish clans. 

1568. A second settlement of Snoddys arrived in Ireland in this year under the 3rd Earl of Eglington. Like the first settlement, this second one settled in the same areas and were also Catholic. They fled Scotland after the Catholic side lost at the battle of Langside.

1606/7. A third pre-Plantation settlement of the name Snoddy into Antrim. They arrived in the trail of James Hamilton-Hugh Montgomery. This was a private self-financed mini plantation of both Catholic and Protestants. This saw many Montgomery, Cunningham and a small amount of Snoddys settling and it is not known if they were Catholic or Protestants.

1610. This year saw a mass movement of people from Scotland, settle in Ulster. The Snoddys, all Protestants, settled at Ballysnod and surrounding areas in this year.  This was the largest single movement of Snoddys into Ireland. They arrived into areas already populated by Catholic Snoddys. We have no records of tensions between the two groups.

Post 1640. This is the fifth and final migration of Snoddys into east Ulster. This group were anti-Irish and staunch Presbyterians. This time we see the form Snodgrass and Snodgers arrive and mostly settle in Co Fermanagh and Armagh outwith traditional Snoddy lands.

In the 20th century a branch of the Snoddy surname moved south to Co Offaly and eventually Gaelicised their name to Ó Snodaigh, unaware of the old traditional form of Snoideach. Snoddy remains one of the strange, unusual, little heard of Irish clans, one with a mix of Catholic and Presbyterian heritage but still Celtic at heart.

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johnsnoddy@atomicmail.io