Contents [hide]

Cay History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Cay History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland
Ireland

The surname Cay is derived from the Breton and Old Welsh word "Cai," and the Cornish word "Key," both of which meant "wharf." This name became the Middle English given name Kay. Some instances of this surname are no doubt derived from the Old English "Coeg," which meant "key." 1

Early Origins of the Cay family

The surname Cay was first found in the Pipe Rolls for Northumbria where Britius filius Kay is listed there in 1199. Cecilia de Kay was in the Pipe Rolls for Gloucestershire in that same year. Another early record in the Pipe Rolls is of John del Cay in 1207 in London. John del Cai was Sheriff of London in 1201 and may be the same person as the aforementioned Pipe Roll entry. 2

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 list a Jordan Kay but the Yorkshire Poll Tax records of 1379 has the most entries of the time: Robertus Cay; Alanus Kay; Johanna Caa; and Willelmus Ka. 3

One reference claims a more romantic origin of the name: "the family of Kaye is of great antiquity in the county of York, being descended from Sir Kaye, an ancient Briton, and one of the Knights of the warlike Table of that noble Prince Arthur, flower of chivalry!!" 4

"The property [of Thornton in Craven in the West Riding of Yorkshire] belongs to various families, the principal owner being Sir John Lister Kaye, Bart., lord of the several manors." 5

"Kay or Kaye is the name of an ancient and distinguished family of Woodsome in the West Riding [of Yorkshire], one of whose members received a baronetcy from Charles I. The Kayes are now best represented in the Huddersfield district of the West Riding, whilst the Kays are more numerous in Lancashire. As far back as the 13th century we find this name, both as Kay and Kaye, in Lincolnshire, Hunts, and Cambridgeshire. 6

Early History of the Cay family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cay research. Another 173 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1219, 1246, 1372, 1480, 1500, 1506, 1510, 1572, 1573 and 1640 are included under the topic Early Cay History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cay Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Kay, Kaye and others.

Early Notables of the Cay family

Notable amongst the family at this time was

Thomas Caius (d. 1572), was a writer on the history of the University of Oxford and was of a Yorkshire family whose name is usually written Key or Cay, but his immediate relatives resided in Lincolnsh...

Migration of the Cay family to Ireland

Some of the Cay family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 37 words (3 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cay migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Cay Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

James Cay, who landed in New York, NY in 1816 7
Michael Cay, who arrived in New York, NY in 1816 7

Cay migration to Australia +

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

Cay Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Edward Cay, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Hooghly" in 1848 8
Robert Cay, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Hooghly" in 1848 8

Contemporary Notables of the name Cay (post 1700) +

John Cay (1700-1757), English editor of the ‘Statutes,’ third son of John Cay of North Charlton, Northumberland 9
David Cay Johnston (b. 1948), American journalist who received the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for Beat Reporting
Cay Forrester (1921-2005), American film and television actress

Historic Events for the Cay family +

Empress of Ireland

Mrs. Catherine Beatrice Cay (1876-1914), Canadian First Class Passenger from Golden, British, Columbia, Canada who was traveling aboard the Empress of Ireland and died in the sinking 10

Citations +

Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. Print
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)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. 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)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) HOOGHLY 1848. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1848Hooghly.htm
Wikisource contributors. "Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900." Wikisource . Wikisource , 4 Jun. 2018. Web. 25 Nov. 2019
Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 16) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html