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![Show Contents]() Kersaw History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 England
The Anglo-Saxon name Kersaw comes from when the family resided in the area of Kirkshaw at Rochdale in the county of Lancashire. Kersaw is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. Habitation names form the other broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties. Early Origins of the Kersaw familyThe surname Kersaw was first found in Lancashire where it is a local name 'of Kirkshaw,' in the parish of Rochdale. Literally the place name means "church-wood." Some of the earliest records of the name include: Matthew de Kyrkshagh, Lancashire in 1281; Geoffrey del Kyrkeshagh, of Rochdale parish in 1390; and John de Kyrkshagh, or Kershaw, of Townhouses, in Rochdale, 1424. 1 Early History of the Kersaw familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kersaw research. Another 97 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1379, 1572, 1617 and 1630 are included under the topic Early Kersaw History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Kersaw Spelling VariationsThe English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Kersaw has been recorded under many different variations, including Kershaw, Kercher, Kershow, Kirshaw, Kirkshaw and others. Early Notables of the Kersaw familyMore information is included under the topic Early Kersaw Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Kersaw familyFor many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Kersaw or a variant listed above: Ralph Kershaw settled in Virginia in 1699; Edmund, Frederick, James, Jesse, John, Lees, Nelson, Napoleon, Robert, Samuel, Thomas and William Kershaw all arrived in Philadelphia between 1800 and 1870..
- Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
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