Kike History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Kike is of Anglo-Saxon origin. It was name for a person who because of their physical characteristics and physical abilities was referred to as kedge a Old English word that described someone who was brisk or active. 1

Although one notes source has a different understanding of the origin on the name. In this case, Kike is from the "Middle English [word] keech ‘a lump of congealed fat; the fat of a slaughtered animal rolled up into a lump’, used in the 16th century for a butcher: ‘Did not goodwife Keech the Butchers wife come in then?’ (Henry IV); ‘I wonder, That such a Keech can with his very bulke Take vp the Rayes o’ th’ beneficiall Sun, And keepe it from the Earth’ (Henry VIII), where the reference is to Cardinal Wolsey, a butcher’s son. " 2

Early Origins of the Kike family

The surname Kike was first found in Cambridgeshire and Surrey where Reginald and Hugo Keche were listed in the Curia Regis Rolls for 1206 and 1219. 2

Years later, the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 included Peter Kech, Norfolk; and Adam Kyg, Buckinghamshire. 1

In Somerset, early rolls there show John Keche holding lands 1 Edward III (during the first year of King Edward III's reign.) 3

In Norfolk, John Keche, was rector of Erpingham in 1430 and "a brass plate in the ancient church of St. Helen's, Norwich, reads: 'Hie jacet corpus Dni. Edmundi Keche, presbyteri' " 4

Early History of the Kike family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kike research. Another 109 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1206, 1620, 1621, 1640, 1673, 1686 and 1704 are included under the topic Early Kike History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kike 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 Kike have been found, including Ketch, Keech, Keach, Kedge and others.

Early Notables of the Kike family

Distinguished members of the family include Hugo Ketch of Cheshire; John (Jack) Ketch (died 1686), one of King Charles II's executioners, who became quite infamous for the terrible suffering of his victims; his name has lived on as slang for the gallows or even for death itself. Benjamin Keach (1640-1704)...
Another 48 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Kike Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Kike family

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 powerful new nations. Among early immigrants of the Kike surname to cross the Atlantic and come to North America were: Margaret and Susan Ketch, who settled in New England in 1665 with their husbands; as well as John Ketch, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1741.

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)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
Rye, Walter, A History of Norfolk. London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, 1885. Print