Adams History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms 

Origins Available: 
  Scotland/England 
  England 
  Ireland 
  Scotland 


The earliest origins of the name Adams date back to the time of the Anglo-Saxons. The name is derived from the given name Adam, which is itself derived from the Latin name Adamus which means earth.

Early Origins of the Adams family

The surname Adams was first found in many counties throughout England and Scotland.

"Six centuries ago Adam probably ranked as second or third favourite among boys' names throughout England. In the north it attained a most remarkable pre-eminence." 1

Another source notes the name is "rare in the eastern and northern counties. In the north, however, its place is sometimes taken by Adamson and Addison, as in the county of Durham. It is at present best represented in Buckinghamshire, Devon, Hampshire, and Staffordshire, and in the counties on the Welsh border, Shropshire and Monmouthshire. " 2

Shortly after the Conquest, forenames were still rare, but for popular names such as this an appellation was typically added denoting "from where they hailed" or in some cases, an occupation. By example, Adam of Barking (fl. 1217?), was a Benedictine monk belonging to the abbey of Sherborne in Dorset; Adam of Buckfield (fl. 1300?), was an English commentator on Aristotle; Adam the Carthusian (fl. 1340) was described as a Carthusian monk and a doctor of theology; Adam of Domerham (d. after 1291), was a monk of Glastonbury, a native of Domerham, a village in Wiltshire belonging to Glastonbury Abbey; Adam de Marisco (d. 1257?), was a learned Franciscan, is said to have been a native of Somerset; and Adam of Orlton (d. 1345), successively bishop of Hereford, Worcester, and Winchester. 3

As far as early rolls are concerned, England and Scotland had the lion's share of early entries.

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had the following entries: John filius Adam, Oxfordshire; Hugh filius Adam, Oxfordshire; German Adam, Cambridgeshire; and Juliana Adams, Huntingdonshire. Further to the north and over one hundred years later, the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed: Johannes Adamson; Johannes Adam; and Thomas Adamson. 1

In Scotland, "Adam sub-prior of Melrose became abbot of Cupar, 1189. Adam son of Adam was one of the witnesses to the charter by William Bruce to Adam of Carlyle of the lands of Kynemund, c. 1194-1214, and he also witnessed the resignation by Dunegal, son of Udard of a carucate of land in Warmanbie within the same period. Adam became abbot of Newbattle in 1201, and another Adam, a native of Lennox (Levenax), was a monk of great sanctity. " 4

Early History of the Adams family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Adams research. Another 186 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1189, 1281, 1327, 1329, 1460, 1585, 1586, 1626, 1651, 1654, 1655, 1656, 1658, 1661, 1662, 1667, 1685, 1689, 1695, 1697, 1698, 1712, 1719, 1720, 1748, 1760, 1789, 1808, 1829, 1890 and 1891 are included under the topic Early Adams History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Adams Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Adams include Adam, Adams, MacAdam, MacAdams, MacCaw and others.

Early Notables of the Adams family

Notable amongst bearers of this family name during their early history was

Adams World Ranking

In the United States, the name Adams is the 36th most popular surname with an estimated 432,738 people with that name. 5 However, in Canada, the name Adams is ranked the 90th most popular surname with an estimated 28,987 people with that name. 6 And in Quebec, Canada, the name Adams is the 795th popular surname. 7 Newfoundland, Canada ranks Adams as 93rd with 337 people. 8 Australia ranks Adams as 61st with 35,800 people. 9 New Zealand ranks Adams as 90th with 4,257 people. 10 The United Kingdom ranks Adams as 70th with 64,665 people. 11 Netherlands ranks Adams as 870th with 2,303 people. 12 South Africa ranks Adams as 56th with 75,697 people. 13

Migration of the Adams family to Ireland

Some of the Adams family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 107 words (8 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Adams migration to the United States +

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Adams or a variant listed above:

Adams Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
Adams Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
Adams Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
Adams Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Adams migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Adams Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
Adams Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Adams migration to Australia +

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

Adams Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Adams 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:

Adams Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Adams 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. 25
Adams Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Adams (post 1700) +


Suggested Readings for the name Adams +
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