Dess History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• England
• Ireland

Etymology of Dess

The history of the Dess family name begins after the Norman Conquest of 1066. They lived in Worcestershire. The family was originally from D'Assche, Normandy 1 or "from At Ash; from residence near an ash-tree." 2

The initial "D" is a retention of the French prefix "de", meaning "of", indicating the local nature of the name. Other surnames that have been similarly derived are Nash, Tash and Daysh.

Early Origins of the Dess family

Early History of the Dess family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dess research. Another 76 words (5 lines of text) covering the year 1200 is included under the topic Early Dess History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dess Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Dash, Dashe, Daishe and others.

Early Notables of the Dess family

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

Migration of the Dess family to Ireland

Some of the Dess family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 42 words (3 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 Dess family

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Dess or a variant listed above were: Richard Dash who settled in Virginia in 1622; John Dash settled in Virginia in 1774; another John Dash arrived in South Carolina in 1822; Joseph Dash arrived in San Francisco in 1852..