Gay last name origin

What does the name Gay mean? The name Gay came to England with the ancestors of the Gay family in the Norman Conquest of The Gay family lived in Surrey. Their name, however, derives from their place of residence prior to the Norman Conquest of England in , Gaye le Manche, France.

1. The surname Gay is of French origin, derived from the Old French word “gai” meaning “joyful” or “merry”. It is one of the oldest recorded surnames in Europe, with its first written instance dating back to the 11th century in England. Based on 23andMe data, people with last name Gay have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.

Last Name: GAY, Learn more about the geographical origin and the etymology of this last name. History: A Congregational clergyman and one of the forerunners of the Unitarian movement in New England, Ebenezer Gay (–) was born in Dedham, MA, which had been founded by his grandfather, John Gay, who came to North America from Wiltshire, England, c.

and settled in Watertown, MA. The Gay family lived in Surrey. Their name, however, derives from their place of residence prior to the Norman Conquest of England in , Gaye le Manche, France. A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gay research.

Another words 13 lines of text covering the years , , , , , , , , and are included under the topic Early Gay History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

gay last names

Multitudes of spelling variations are a hallmark of Anglo Norman names. Most of these names evolved in the 11th and 12th century, in the time after the Normans introduced their own Norman French language into a country where Old and Middle English had no spelling rules and the languages of the court were French and Latin. To make matters worse, medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, so names frequently appeared differently in the various documents in which they were recorded.

The name was spelled Gay, Gaye and others. Outstanding amongst the family at this time was John Gay , an English poet and dramatist and member of the Scriblerus Club, best remembered for The Beggar's Opera , a ballad opera Dictionary of National Biography. In the United States, the name Gay is the th most popular surname with an estimated 37, people with that name.

Because of this political and religious unrest within English society, many people decided to immigrate to the colonies. Families left for Ireland , North America, and Australia in enormous numbers, traveling at high cost in extremely inhospitable conditions. The New World in particular was a desirable destination, but the long voyage caused many to arrive sick and starving. Those who made it, though, were welcomed by opportunities far greater than they had known at home in England.

Many of these families went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Gay or a variant listed above: Gay Settlers in United States in the 17th Century Thomas Gay, who landed in Virginia in Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about , passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries.

Gay Settlers in United States in the 18th Century Pierre Gay, aged 20, who landed in Louisiana in Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about , passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. Gay Settlers in United States in the 19th Century I Gay, aged 34, who landed in New Orleans, La in Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about , passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries.

Gay, b. Retrieved , April Contents [ hide ]. Some of the first settlers of this family name were: Gay Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century Francois Gay, aged 22, who landed in Quebec in Mr. Edward Gay U. Genealogical Publishing Co. Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, Samuel Gay U.

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleet of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Richard Gay, b.