Mersch History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Germany
Ireland

The name Mersch came to England with the ancestors of the Mersch family in the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Mersch family lived on the border between two territories, such as the Marches between England and Wales or on the English Scottish borders. The name may also have emerged as a nickname for someone born in the month of March.

Alternatively, the name could have been derived from the Old English word "mersc" and denoted a "dweller near a marsh." 1 2

Early Origins of the Mersch family

The surname Mersch was first found in Somerset where Godard de la Merse was listed in the Pipe Rolls of 1194. Later, Henry del Merse was found in the Curia Regis Rolls of 1212 and William atte Mersche was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1296. The variant Mash dates back to 1524 when Robert Masshe was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Suffolk. 1

The name is "distributed over the greater part of England, but rare or absent north of Nottinghamshire and Lancashire. It has several centres, namely, in Cambridgeshire and Kent in the east, in Lancashire in the north, in Shropshire in the west, and in Wilts, Dorset, and Somerset in the south. Marsh is the name of a parish both in Shropshire and Kent." 3

There are "parishes in counties Buckingham and Lincoln. The Kentish family appear to have been in that county from the XIV. cent. The Latinization is De Marisco, and the medieval form is Ate-Mershe. The equivalent name Marais is common in France." 4

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed Isabel ate Mershe, Oxfordshire and John in le Merse, Oxfordshire. 2

Early History of the Mersch family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Mersch research. Another 112 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1515, 1555, 1567, 1568, 1626, 1638, 1667, 1673, 1682, 1683, 1691, 1693, 1694, 1703, 1713, 1734 and 1782 are included under the topic Early Mersch History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mersch Spelling Variations

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 Marsh, Marsch, Marshe and others.

Early Notables of the Mersch family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was George Marsh (1515-1555), a Protestant martyr born in the parish of Deane near Bolton. He was executed in April 1555 as a result of the Marian Persecutions carried out against Protestant Reformers and other dissenters during the reign of Mary I of England. The church of Deane in Bolton has a "very old...
Another 60 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Mersch Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Mersch family to Ireland

Some of the Mersch family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 53 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mersch migration to the United States +

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 Mersch or a variant listed above:

Mersch Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Joh Gerh Mersch, who arrived in America in 1820 5
Joh Michel Mersch, who landed in America in 1833 5
Cath Marg Mersch, who landed in Baltimore, Maryland in 1837 5
Christ Mersch, who arrived in America in 1839 5
Gerh Herm Mersch, who landed in America in 1849 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Mersch (post 1700) +

M. J. Mersch, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Wisconsin, 1928

Citations +

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)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
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)