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Corns History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Corns History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Wales

The surname Corns is a Welsh name that was first held when the Corns family lived in the English county of Cornwall. As a general rule, the greater the distance between individuals and their homelands, the larger the territory they were named after. For example, people who only moved to another parish would be known by the name of their original village, while people who migrated to a different country were often known by the name of a region or country from which they came. Consequently, the name Corns was not originally applied to a lifelong resident of Cornwall, but rather to someone who emigrated from Cornwall to another region. 1

Early Origins of the Corns family

The surname Corns was first found in Devon, England where the "surname is derived from a geographical locality. 'the Cornish,' a Cornish man. We do not expect to find Cornish in Cornwall, but in Devonshire. Coming over the border the stranger would be called Cornish from the county he had left. Hence Cornish is rare in Cornwall and common in Devonshire. We may safely conclude that when we find Cornish in Cornwall the bearer has returned to the county whence his ancestors sprang." 2

"The manor of Trevorick, [in St. Issey, Cornwall] on which the family of Cornish had their seat, was for several generations in their possession." 3

"The Devonshire families of Cornish are now best represented in Newton Abbot and its neighbourhood. George Cornish was commander of one of the Bideford ships engaged in the Newfoundland trade in the reign of William III. " 4 In Devon, Thomas Cornyssh was Warden of St Mary's College, Ottery St Mary in 1490.

"In the parish registers [of Stratton, Cornwall] is preserved the following singular instance of longevity:-'Elizabeth Cornish, widow, buried March 10th, 1691. This Elizabeth Cornish was baptised in October, 1578. Her father's name was John Weale. She was when she died in the 114th year, having lived one hundred and thirteen years four months and fifteen days.' It appears by the register that in the year 1547, one hundred and fifty-three persons died in the small town of Stratton of the plague." 3

Early History of the Corns family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Corns research. Another 116 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1296, 1375, 1450, 1465, 1493, 1502, 1523, 1677, 1685 and 1689 are included under the topic Early Corns History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Corns Spelling Variations

The Welsh have an extremely large amount of spelling variations of their native surnames to their credit. The earliest explanation for the preponderance of spelling variations is that when Welsh surnames were in Welsh and accordingly were difficult to translate into English. It was therefore up to the priest or the scribe taking the official records to determine how the spoken name was to be made literal. As time progressed, the old Brythonic names of Wales were recorded in English, which was especially problematic since the English language had extreme difficulty recording the highly inflected sounds of Cymraeg. Spelling variations were, however, also carried out according to an individual's design: a branch loyalty within the family, a religious adherence, or even patriotic affiliations could be indicated by spelling variations of one's name. The spelling variations of the name Corns have included Cornish, Cornishe, Corniss, Cornise, Carnish, Cornich, Corniche, Cornick and many more.

Early Notables of the Corns family

Prominent amongst the family during the late Middle Ages was William Cornysh the Younger (also spelled Cornyshe or Cornish) (1465-1523), an English composer, dramatist, actor, and poet. His only surviving poem, was written in Fleet Prison. " In the Privy Purse Expenses of Henry VII under date Nov. 12, 1493, a payment is entered 'to one Cornyshe for a prophecy in rewarde, 13s. 4d.,' and in the Privy Purse Expenses of Henry's Queen, Elizabeth of York, under date Dec. 1502, a similar amount for 'setting of a carralle upon Christmas day.' " 5His son, William Cornyshe...
Another 95 words (7 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Corns Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Corns Ranking

In the United States, the name Corns is the 14,946^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 6

Corns migration to the United States +

During the latter half of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, the people of Wales journeyed to North America to find a new life. They made major contributions to the arts, industry and commerce of both Canada and the United States, and added a rich cultural heritage to their newly adopted societies. A look at the immigration and passenger lists has shown a number of people bearing the name Corns:

Corns Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Pierre Corns, who arrived in Jamestown, Va in 1700 7

Corns Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Joseph Corns, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1844 7

Corns migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Corns Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Michel Corns, who landed in Quebec in 1782
Mr. Cors Corns U.E. who settled in Home District, [Niagara], Lincoln County, Ontario c. 1783 8

Corns migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Corns Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Thomas Bailey Corns, Welsh convict from Brecon, Wales, who was transported aboard the "Asia" on September 3rd, 1820, settling in New South Wales, Australia 9

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Hutchins, Fortescue, The History of Cornwall, from the Earliest Records and Traditions to the Present Time. London: William Penaluna, 1824. Print
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Grove, Sir George, A Dictionary of Music and Musicians (AD. 1450-1889) London: Macmillan1902, Print, 2 Vols
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1820 with 192 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1820