Farriss Surname History

Origins Available:
England
Scotland
Ireland

In the mountains of Scotland's west coast and on the Hebrides islands, the ancestors of the Farriss family were born. Their name comes from the Scottish surname MacFergus, which means "son of Fergus", which is in turn derived from the Gaelic personal name "Fearghus," composed of the elements "fear," meaning "man," and "gus," meaning "vigor" or "force." This Gaelic name was found early in both Ireland and Scotland. The name is a cognate of with the Cymric "Gwr-gwst," Old Bret. "Urorgost" and the Pictish word "Forcus." This last Pictish form of the name is found on a monument at St. Vigeans in Angus as "Fercos."

Fergus I (fl. 330 B.C.?), "son of Ferchard, was the first king of Scotland, according to the fictitious chronology of Boece and Buchanan, is said to have come to Scotland from Ireland about 330 B.C. to assist the Scots already settled in Scotland against the joint attack of the Picts and Britons. After succeeding in this he is further said to have gone back to Ireland to quell disturbances which had arisen in his absence, and to have been drowned in the passage off the rock or port which got the name of Carrick Fergus from him. " 1

Early Origins of the Farriss family

The surname Farriss was first found in Galloway (Gaelic: Gall-ghaidhealaibh), an area of southwestern Scotland, now part of the Council Area of Dumfries and Galloway, that formerly consisted of the counties of Wigtown (West Galloway) and Kirkcudbright (East Galloway), Ireland where St. Fergus (Fergustian) (circa 730 AD) was an Irish bishop, who went to Scotland as a missionary.

He settled near Strageath and founded three churches in Strogeth and two in Caithness. It is possible that he was the Fergustus Pictus who went to Rome in 721 AD. According to Irish lore, a family of this name descend from Fergus, Prince of Galloway (d. 1161), who is said to have married a daughter of Henry I of England.

Constantine Mac Fergus (d. 820), was King of the Picts, he "acquired the monarchy by the defeat of Conall Mac Taidg (Teige), who was assassinated in 807 by another Conall, son of Aidan, a Dalriad king in Kintyre. " 1

Early History of the Farriss family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Farriss research. Another 148 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1300, 1466, 1499, 1582 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Farriss History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Farriss Spelling Variations

In various documents Farriss has been spelled Since medieval scribes still spelled according to sound, records from that era contain an enormous number of spelling variations. Fergus, Fergie, Forgie, Forgus, Ferris, Farris and many more.

Early Notables of the Farriss family

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

Migration of the Farriss family to Ireland

Some of the Farriss family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 70 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Farriss family

The descendants of the Dalriadan families who made the great crossing of the Atlantic still dot communities along the east coast of the United States and Canada. In the American War of Independence, many of the settlers traveled north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. Clan societies and highland games have allowed Canadian and American families of Scottish descent to recover much of their lost heritage. Investigation of the origins of family names on the North American continent has revealed that early immigrants bearing the name Farriss or a variant listed above include: Owen Fergus, who settled in Boston in 1739; James Fergus, who arrived in North Carolina in 1740; another James Fergus, who settled in New York in 1774.

Citations +

Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print