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Kew History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Kew History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Kew comes from one of the family having worked as a person who worked as the cook. The surname was originally derived from the Old French terms queu, keu, kieu, cu, which denoted the cook or someone who operated an eating house.

Early Origins of the Kew family

The surname Kew was first found in Norfolk where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.

Early History of the Kew family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kew research. Another 115 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1150, 1296 and 1305 are included under the topic Early Kew History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kew Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Kew have been found, including: Kew and others.

Early Notables of the Kew family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

Kew of Norfolk

Kew migration to the United States +

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Among the first immigrants of the name Kew, or a variant listed above to cross the Atlantic and come to North America were :

Kew Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Dorothy Kew, who arrived in Virginia in 1655 [1]
Robert Kew, who settled in Virginia in 1663
Nicholas Kew, who settled in Antigua in 1679

Kew migration to Australia +

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

Kew Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

John Kew, English convict from Essex, who was transported aboard the "Asia" on April 1st, 1822, settling in New South Wales, Australia [2]
Peter Kew, who arrived in New South Wales, Australia sometime between 1825 and 1832
Mr. John Kew, English convict who was convicted in Northampton, Northamptonshire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Canton" on 20th September 1839, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) [3]
William Kew, aged 36, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1856 aboard the ship "Nabob"
Sarah Ann Kew, aged 17, a domestic servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1856 aboard the ship "Nabob"
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Kew migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Kew Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

William Kew, aged 32, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "London" in 1842
Mary Kew, aged 28, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "London" in 1842
Miss Emma Kew, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Spray of the Ocean" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 1st September 1859 [4]
Mr. George Kew, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Spray of the Ocean" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 1st September 1859 [4]
Mrs. Jane Kew, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Spray of the Ocean" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 1st September 1859 [4]
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Kew migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. [5]

Kew Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Anne Kew with her husband and servants settled in Barbados in 1680

Contemporary Notables of the name Kew (post 1700) +

Alex Kew (b. 1986), English actor, musician and singer-songwriter
Gordon Cecil Kew (b. 1930), English former football referee

Citations +

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 Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1822 with 190 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1822
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/canton
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies