This is one of the oldest and most heroic of all Irish family names. The Dalys claim descent from one of Ireland's epic heroes from Celtic mythology, Niall of the Nine Hostages. He was the High King of Tara from AD 380 to 405. The hill of Tara can still be seen today, an impressive sight, even though the remains of the royal palaces there are long gone.

The name Daly comes from the Irish word dáil, which means a place where councils or assemblies are held. The present day Dáil (lower house of parliment in Dublin) has this same meaning.

Originally, the Dalys were to be found in Co Westmeath, but there were sub-septs in many different localities in counties Clare, Cork and Galway. There are now more than 30,000 Dalys in Ireland alone. The name is also known as Dawley.

In the last century, Marcus Daly, from Ballyjamesduff in Co Cavan, who emigrated to California, became enormously wealthy from his mining activities and was nicknamed the "Copper King". He lived from 1841 to 1900.