About the O'Breen Surname

Seen on a birth certificate or a ship's manifest, O'Breen is usually a form of Breen. The O' in front of the name is a particle that was often added to Breen in records. Surname dictionaries give the meaning as “Descendant of Braon ("sorrow" or "moisture")”. Before spelling was standardised, one family could appear under several forms.

The same family of names includes MacBreen and Brien.

Arms linked to Breen and its spellings were granted to individual families; our heraldry team traces which line they belonged to. For the full story, order the O'Breen surname pack.