Show ContentsCoase History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Coase is of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from when the family lived in a small cottage, hut, or hovel. The surname Coase is derived from the Old English words cosche and cosshe, which both have this meaning. These words first appeared c. 1490. Coase belongs to the class of topographic surnames, which were given to people who resided near physical features such as hills, streams, churches, or types of tree.

Early Origins of the Coase family

The surname Coase was first found in Cambridgeshire, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Coase family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Coase research. Another 91 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1248, 1273, 1296, 1300, 1563, 1564, 1567, 1568, 1577, 1631, 1672, 1685, 1735, 1742 and 1801 are included under the topic Early Coase History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Coase Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, early Anglo-Saxon surnames like Coase are characterized by many spelling variations. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages, even literate people changed the spelling of their names. Scribes and monks in the Middle Ages spelled names they sounded, so it is common to find several variations that refer to a single person. The variations of the name Coase include: Coish, Coysh, Quoise, Coise and others.

Early Notables of the Coase family

Distinguished members of the family include Nicholas Quoise, a prominent landholder in 16th century London; and Elisha Coysh (1631-1685), a prominent physician from London. He and his wife had seven children and had several homes including one at Swain's or Swine's...
Another 40 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Coase Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Coase migration to the United States +

Many English families tired of political and religious strife left Britain for the new colonies in North America. Although the trip itself offered no relief - conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and many travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute - these immigrants believed the opportunities that awaited them were worth the risks. Once in the colonies, many of the families did indeed prosper and, in turn, made significant contributions to the culture and economies of the growing colonies. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families has revealed a number of immigrants bearing the name Coase or a variant listed above:

Coase Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • John Coase, who landed in Virginia in 1699 1

Contemporary Notables of the name Coase (post 1700) +

  • Ronald Harry Coase (1910-2013), English-born, American economist and the Clifton R. Musser Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Chicago Law School, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Economics (1991)


  1. 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)


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