Barrett History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms 

Origins Available: 
  France 
  Ireland 
  England 


When the Strongbownians arrived in Ireland, they encountered an established Irish system for creating hereditary surnames. However, like the Irish, the Anglo-Norman Strongbownians frequently had patronymic surnames, a form of surname that was formed from the name of the bearer's father, or another older relative. Therefore, since the Strongbownians' system was in many ways built on the same principles as the Irish, the two systems eventually attained a sort of merger. Since the Stronbownian's names often had Norman names which were French, diminutive suffixes, such as -ot, -et, -un, -in, or -el were added to the name of the bearer's father, or older relative. Another Norman way of creating a patronymic name was to use the prefix Fitz-, which was derived from the French word "fils," and ultimately from the Latin "filius," both of which mean son. The surname Barrett is derived from the personal name Berold. In Munster, the Gaelic form of the surname Barrett is Baróid, while in Connacht, the Gaelic form is Bairéid.

Early Origins of the Barrett family

The surname Barrett was first found in Lincolnshire, where Matthew Baret was recorded between 1150 and 1155. The Barret family was also established in the English counties of Nottinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Hampshire, Yorkshire and Essex. However, they joined Strongbow in his invasion of Ireland in 1172 at the invitation of the King of Leinster, Dermot McMurrough. Strongbow granted lands to the family in County Cork and County Mayo where they became staunchly Irish.

Patrick Barret (d. 1415), was an Irish ecclesiastic and judge, one of the canons of the Augustinian abbey of Kells in Ossory, was consecrated Bishop of Ferns in Wexford by the Pope at Rome in December 1400. 1

Not all of the family emigrated to Ireland, but today the name is better known there than in England. By example, "the manor of Ashton, or Ashtorre Barrett, in [the parish of St. Dominick, Cornwall], belonged for many generations to the ancient family of Barrett; but on failure of male issue it passed with an heiress in 1707 to the family of Prestwood." 2

Early History of the Barrett family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Barrett research. Another 91 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1400, 1410, 1412, 1415, 1554, 1555, 1558, 1580, 1631, 1691, 1693 and 1713 are included under the topic Early Barrett History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Barrett Spelling Variations

During an investigation of the origin of each name, it was found that church officials and medieval scribes spelled many surnames as they sounded. Therefore, during the lifetime of a single person, a name could be spelt numerous ways. Some of the spelling variations for the name Barrett include Barrett, Barret, Barett, Baret, Barratt, Barrat, Barat, Baratt, McWhadden and many more.

Early Notables of the Barrett family

Notable amongst the family up to this time was

Barrett World Ranking

In the United States, the name Barrett is the 280th most popular surname with an estimated 96,993 people with that name. 3 However, in Canada, the name Barrett is ranked the 399th most popular surname with an estimated 11,607 people with that name. 4 And in Newfoundland, Canada, the name Barrett is the 56th popular surname with an estimated 447 people with that name. 5 Australia ranks Barrett as 191st with 16,704 people. 6 New Zealand ranks Barrett as 200th with 2,795 people. 7 The United Kingdom ranks Barrett as 166th with 32,381 people. 8


Barrett migration to the United States +

Ireland experienced a dramatic decrease in its population during the 19th century. This was in a great measure, a response to England's imperialistic policies. Hunger and disease took the lives of many Irish people and many more chose to leave their homeland to escape the horrific conditions. North America with its promise of work, freedom, and land was an extremely popular destination for Irish families. For those families that survived the journey, all three of these things were often attained through much hard work and perseverance. Research into early immigration and passenger lists revealed many immigrants bearing the name Barrett:

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

Barrett migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

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

Barrett migration to Australia +

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

Barrett Settlers in Australia in the 18th Century
Barrett Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Barrett 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:

Barrett Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Barrett 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. 19
Barrett Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Barrett (post 1700) +


Suggested Readings for the name Barrett +
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