Causley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The ancient roots of the Causley family name are in the Anglo-Saxon culture. The name Causley comes from when the family lived in the Pays de Caux (Seine-Infèrieure) in Normandy. However, the surname Causley may have also been applied to someone who lived near a causeway, which was a raised roadway crossing wet or low-lying ground. In this latter case, the surname Causley is derived from the Old English word cauce, meaning causeway. 1

Causley is a classic example of an English polygenetic surname, which is a surname that was developed in a number of different locations and adopted by various families independently.

Early Origins of the Causley family

The surname Causley was first found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 where John de Chausy, Gloucestershire was listed. Following this early listing further, we found Robert Causeys, Causay was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex 1327, 1332; Robert de Calceto listed in the Assize Rolls for Lincolnshire in 1202; and Henry atte Cause listed in the Somerset Rolls for 1356. 2

The variant "Cossey is an old Norwich name. In 1472, Henry Cossey, who was afterwards rector of Wilby, was a noted friar of the Dominican convent in Norwich; and there were then others of the name in that city. About the same time John Cossey was rector of Cougbam." 3

The Causey variant seems unique to Devon and Cornwall. 4 More specifically, Trusham was the ancestral home of the Causley family, whose descendants include the poet Charles Causley and the folk singer Jim Causley.

Today Trusham is "a parish, in the union of NewtonAbbott, hundred of Exminster, Teignbridge and S. divisions of Devon." 5 But turning back the pages of time, we found that Trusham goes at least as far back as the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was known as Trisma 6 and originally meant "place overgrown with brushwood." 7

Early History of the Causley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Causley research. Another 91 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Causley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Causley Spelling Variations

One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Causley has appeared include Causey, Causley, Cause, Causy and others.

Early Notables of the Causley family

Distinguished members of the family include

Richard Causley of Causey

Causley migration to Canada +

At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Causley arrived in North America very early:

Causley Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mrs. Causley, who arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1778

Contemporary Notables of the name Causley (post 1700) +

Jim Causley (b. 1980), English folk singer, songwriter, and musician from Devon
Charles Stanley Causley CBE, FRSL (1917-2003), Cornish poet, schoolmaster and writer from Launceston, Cornwall
Ian Raymond Causley (1940-2020), Australian politician, Member for Clarence (1984–1996) and Member for Page (1996–2007)

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. 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)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, 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)