Aggiss History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

The surname Aggiss is a name whose history on English soil dates back to the wave of migration that followed the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. The name Aggiss comes from a the baptismal name for the son of Agace. As the naming tradition grew in Europe baptismal names began to be introduced in many countries. Baptismal names were sometimes given in honor of Christian saints and other biblical figures. There are very few Christian countries in Europe that did not adopt surnames from these religious figures.

Early Origins of the Aggiss family

The surname Aggiss was first found in Huntingdonshire (now a non-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire) where early records of the name were found as both a forename and a surname. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 revealed: John Messor et Agacia, uxor sua in Cambridgeshire; Agacia de Gatesdon in Devon; Robert filius Agacie in Cambridgeshire; Symon Agace in Huntingdonshire; and William Agaz in Buckinghamshire. 1

The Yorkshire Poll Tax of 1379 listed Simon Agasson.

Further to the north in Scotland, the variant Haggis is of "local origin from Haggis, a common place name occurring in the shires of Berwick, Ayr, Lanark, Renfrew, Aberdeen, and Banff. " 2 And the first records of the family include: "Gilbert of Haggehouse, a Scots merchant, was arrested at Lynn in England without cause, 1394; and William Haggus [who] held land in the Almory of Abirbrothoc in 1427." 2

Haggis is a savoury pudding and traditional Scottish dish. Thanks to Robert Burns' poem "Address to a Haggis" in 1787, the pudding is a favourite every Robbie Burn's Day where the poem is recited and the pudding is typically piped in with much ceremony.

Early History of the Aggiss family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Aggiss research. Another 84 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1379, 1540, 1564, 1601, 1621, 1662 and 1679 are included under the topic Early Aggiss History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Aggiss Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Aggiss family name include Haggas, Haggis, Hagis, Hagass, Haggist, Hagges, Hages, Hagus, Hagase, Aggas, Agas, Aggs, Agace, Agus and many more.

Early Notables of the Aggiss family

Distinguished members of the family include Robert Aggas, (d. 1679) an English painter, who was employed by Charles II as a scene-painter for the theatre in Dorset Garden. 3 Ralph Agas (1540-1621), was a land surveyor, who rose to eminence by making maps of London. He was a native of Stoke-by-Nayland, in Suffolk. 1 3 Benjamin Agus (fl...
Another 55 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Aggiss Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Aggiss family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Aggiss surname or a spelling variation of the name include : Humphrey Haggist who settled in Virginia in 1654.

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print