Egly History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

Following the Norman Conquest of England in 1066, the name Egly was first found in Britina. It was a name for a person exhibiting characteristics associated with the eagle, such as a lordly or impressive nature, or sharp-eyed vision. The name may also be of toponymic origin and derive from either of two place-names Eagle, in Lincolnshire, 1 or L'Aigle, in Normandy. 2

Another source claims the name is "metaphorically applied to a person of ambitious or soaring disposition." 3

Early Origins of the Egly family

The surname Egly was first found in Lincolnshire where the name dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 as Aclei or Aycle. 4 Literally the place name means "wood where oak trees grow." 5

However, we must look to Yorkshire to find one of the first record in early rolls, that of Gilbertus de Aquila who was listed there in the Pipe Rolls of 1196. Richer del Egle was found in the Curia Regis Rolls for Northumberland in 1210 and a few years later, Ralph Egle was listed in the Pipe Rolls for Yorkshire in 1230. 6

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 record: William Egle, Cambridgeshire; Custance Egke, Cambridgeshire; and Gilbert de la Hegle, Sussex. 7

In Scotland, the family claim descent from the "Norman family of L'Aigle. Matilda de Aquila, 1129, [was] widow of Robert Mowbray, Earl of Northumberland." 8

Early History of the Egly family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Egly research. Another 102 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1129 and 1230 are included under the topic Early Egly History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Egly Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, Anglo-Norman surnames like Egly are characterized by many spelling variations. Scribes and monks in the Middle Ages spelled names they sounded, so it is common to find several variations that refer to a single person. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages such as Norman French and Latin, even literate people regularly changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Egly include Eagle, Eagles, Hegel, Hegell, Aigle, Eagel, Ligle and others.

Early Notables of the Egly family

More information is included under the topic Early Egly Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Egly migration to the United States +

Faced with the chaos present in England at that time, many English families looked towards the open frontiers of the New World with its opportunities to escape oppression and starvation. People migrated to North America, as well as Australia and Ireland in droves, paying exorbitant rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, but those who did see the shores of North America were welcomed with great opportunity. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America carried the name Egly, or a variant listed above:

Egly Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Caspar Egly, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1762 9
Casper Egly, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1762 9

Egly Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Conrad Egly, aged 19, who landed in New York, NY in 1850 9

Egly migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Egly Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Dorthea Egly, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1757

Citations +

Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. Print.
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
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)