Queck History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The origins of the Queck name lie with England's ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. It comes from when the family lived in the county of Devon where they worked as dairy farmers. The surname is both local and occupational, since it describes where the original bearers lived and what work they did. The surname was originally derived from the Old English word cwic. Occupational names that were derived from the common trades of the medieval era transcended European cultural and linguistic boundaries. In this case the surname Queck was originally derived from the principal object associated with the activity of the original bearer; dairy farming. These types of occupational surnames are called metonymic surnames.

Early Origins of the Queck family

The surname Queck was first found in Devon where this name occurred amongst the burgesses and churchwardens of Tiverton. 1 The name was also frequented in Cornwall where the name was derived from the Cornish word guîk, meaning a village. 2

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had only one listing and was with a very early spelling: Robert Quic in Cambridgeshire. The Close Rolls listed William Quykkc, 14 Henry VI and John Quicke, Close Rolls, 3 Edward IV. 3 For these two latter entries, the reader should note that early rolls used the date of the king's reign as in 14 Henry VI, which meant during the 14th year of King Henry VI's reign.

Early History of the Queck family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Queck research. Another 84 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1600, 1636, 1650, 1653, 1706 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Queck History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Queck Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Queck were recorded, including Quick, Quicke, Quig, Quigg, Quegg and others.

Early Notables of the Queck family

Another 36 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Queck Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Queck family to Ireland

Some of the Queck family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 51 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Queck migration to the United States +

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Queck family emigrate to North America:

Queck Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Anton Ludwig Queck, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1872 4

Citations +

Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
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)