It is said that when asked his opinion on O'Neill-Lane's Larger English-Irish Dictionary, Padraig Ua Duinnin, compiler of Focloir Gaedhilge agus Bearla (1904), responded, more with his penchant for word-play than, let us charitably presume, as a criticism, "O, nil aon (O Neill Lane) mhaith ann!". However, when we went searching for the word "linney", all our dictionaries, English and Irish, failed until we came to O'Neill-Lane! "Linney, n., a shed erected against a wall, sgailp . . .".
We had come across "linney" in Volume VI of the Civil Survey 1654, in the section concerning Cork city. Together with her residence in John Meade's lane, Elizabeth Merrine had "A linny or sheade"; John Champion, Lord Bishop of Cork, had, among his other properties, a house and "One thatcht linny" in Nicholas Skiddy's lane, and John Wrenn's residence in David Terry fitz Stephens lane in the north-east quarter of Cork had "One front linny slated". Another property of his was at "The Sign of the White Horse". William Wrenn was one of three tenants in Gallows lane West side, in the south suburbs of Cork city.
The Penguin Dictionary of Surnames says of the English surname Wren(n) was from "wren" - the bird. This was occasionally used as a synonym of ring and Rynne, both of which are anglicised forms of O Rinn (rinn point, tip; point of spear). "This was the name of two distinct septs whose present day descendants are still to be found in the territories occupied by them in the Gaelic period. Neither is now very numerous, but that of the barony of Imokilly in Co Cork accounts for 75 per cent of the name" (More Irish Families: Edward Mac Lysaght). Imokilly comes from Ui Macaille, a tribe or population group of which the O Rinns were a branch.
Annala Rioghachta Eireann/Annals of the Four Masters notes the slaying in the year 1135 of Maelgorm O Rinn or Ua Rinn along with many of the men of Desmond at the causeway of Cluain caoin Modiomocc. It appears that this was in the Co Tipperary barony of Middlethird. The Justiciary Rolls (1308-1314) report a hearing at Cork in 1307 wherein Elena Ryng "with a number of men was convicted of having castrated a cleric called Stephen O Regan for continuous intercourse with the wife of a man absent on military service". At the same venue in 1311 "Oweyn Gallecurry charged that when Tatheg Oryn and Dougheyth Oryn stole from Henry Ohursy a cow worth 5s., the said Tatheg and Dougheyth led the cow to the house of the said Oweyn at Balyspalen and there killed and ate it . . .". The same year Tatheg and Dougheyth, along with David Oryng were involved in the theft of seven afers and twenty-one cows. Two years later, again at Cork, one of the name, Inyen Oryn, was the victim of a theft.
The Irish Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns (1521-1603) notes one Christopher Wrenne among the gentlemen attendant to the Lord Deputy in 1576 for the purpose of executing martial law in the county of Dublin. In 1578 he was granted the wardship and marriage of Piers, son and heir of John Walshe, late of Kilgobbin, Co Dublin, and custody of the lands during minority. That same year he was among a number of persons pardoned in Dublin, and again along with Meiler Magra, Archbishop of Cashel. In 1590 Cahell O Rinne of Lysnagabraghe was pardoned, as were David m'Mahowne O Ring and Shane m'Dermot O Ring of Carignacorie. The 1659 Census of Ireland lists William Wrenne among the tituladoes of the north-east quarter of Cork city, and Thomas Wren as a Co Meath Commissioner of the Poll-money Ordinances for the years 1660 and 1661. A Capt Wrenn was part of Colonel Ingoldsby's Regiment who were to be satisfied with land in west and east Meath on being disbanded in 1653.
The seven Ring/Wren landholdings in 1876 were in Co Clare, Cork and Kerry. The 2,466 acres belonging to Leslie Wrenn, Tralee, were likely to be the lands of the Wrenns of Litter, Ballylongford, settlers from England. Christy Ring (1921-1979), renowned Cork hurler, was no doubt, the most famous bearer of the surname. Telephone directories list 262 Ring entries; 37 Wrenn; 24 each of Wryn and Wrynn; eight Wrenne, and six Wrynne. The majority of Rings were in the 02 area, and the majority of Wrenns in the 06.
Wrensborough, in the Co Tipperary parish of Thurles, has nothing to do with the surname Wren(ne). Earlier names here were Raithin Rua and Dreoilin, and sometime around 1818 dreoilin, translated to Wren, gave Wrensborough. Today's official Irish for this place is An Raithin Rua, "the little red fort".