OSSORY

also spelled Osraighe, an ancient kingdom of Ireland that won for itself a semi-independent position as a state within the kingdom of Leinster, probably in the 1st century AD. In the 9th century it was ruled by an able king, Cerball, who allied himself with the Norse invaders and figured in later centuries as an ancestor of some important families in Iceland. When surnames were introduced, the dynasts descended from him in Ireland were known as Mac Gillpadraig, a name transformed under Norman influence into Fitzpatrick. In the 11th century they contended for the kingship of Leinster but were soon overwhelmed by the south Leinster family of MacMurrough. In feudal times the Butlers became the most powerful lords in that area. The modern diocese of Ossory, with its see at Kilkenny, indicates the extent of the ancient state.