Feeling Irish

My family like many North American families has been on this continent for hundreds of years. Studies show that the first Conklin's to arrive on this continent arrived sometime between the 1500 and 1600 hundreds. Members of my family have done extensive research about my specific branch of Conklin's and came to the conclusion that we were glass makers in London England before we migrated to North Eastern United States. They also found that the name Conklin came from the word "Conk" which is British slang for big noise. This doesn't seem all that far fetched when looking at my immediate relatives noises and the character that each noise seems to possess. 

Knowing where we come from is something that many humans take pride in. The debate within my family is are the Conklin's Irish, English or Dutch. Evidence points to all three. Something I found doing a Google search as a boy was a Conklin family motto. The motto read "Glory is the reward of valour". This motto was taken off a website that claimed Conklin was originally a Dutch name. I always liked to think that Conklin was an Irish name. However someone pointed out to me recently that Conklin's may in fact have originated in Cornwall England. I have nothing wrong with being from England don't get me wrong, I just always liked the thought of being Irish. Is it possible that Conklin came originally from the Netherlands, moved to Ireland and then ended up in England before crossing the Atlantic to Boston. I guess these are all possibilities. One thing that is certain is that the Conklin's have been on this continent for over 400 years. The Conklin's it is said were loyal to the British crown and fled north when the Americans claimed their independence from the crown, more evidence showing that we were in fact English.

All I know is that it is fun to think about all of this stuff, and not knowing were you come from will always be the case for many who live on the North American continent. I do hope one day to travel back across the atlantic and visit these places where maybe my ancestors once lived hundreds of years ago, but until then, I just have my large noise and Canadian patriotism to satisfy my curiosity.