Show ContentsMeath History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Meath family

The surname Meath was first found in the East Riding of Yorkshire at Metham, a township, in the parish and union of Howden, wapentake of Howdenshire. "The township comprises 920 acres, of which two-thirds are arable. Metham Hall was built by Sir George Metham, whose family were long seated here." [1] At the time of the Domesday census, in 1086, Metham was occupied by Ilbert de Lacy, a Norman noble.

Some of the family were later found at Marr in the West Riding of Yorkshire. "It was once the residence of the family of Metham, of whose spacious and handsome mansion considerable remains existed some years since." [1]

Early History of the Meath family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Meath research. Another 34 words (2 lines of text) covering the years 1276 and 1573 are included under the topic Early Meath History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Meath Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Metham, Methem, Mettam, Mettham, Meetham, Meatham, Meethem, Methan and many more.

Early Notables of the Meath family

Another 38 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Meath Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Meath migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Meath Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Dominick Meath, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1745 [2]
Meath Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • John Meath, who landed in Mississippi in 1871 [2]

Australia Meath migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Meath Settlers in Australia in the 18th Century
  • Miss Elizabeth Meath, English convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 7 years , transported aboard the "Britannia III" on 18th July 1798, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [3]

Contemporary Notables of the name Meath (post 1700) +

  • Lawrence W. Meath, American Republican politician, Member of Alaska territorial House of Representatives 4th District, 1947-48 [4]


  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  2. 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)
  3. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/Britannia
  4. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 4) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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