Blake History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms 

Origins Available: 
  England 
  Ireland 


There art two possible origins of the Irish surname Blake. The first is that it originated from the Gaelic "O Blathmhaic," which translates as "descendant of Blathmhac," a personal name for the Gaelic "blath" meaning "flower", "blossom", "fame", "prosperity." The second was that the name could have been derived from the Old English word "blaec" meaning "dark" or "swarthy."

Early Origins of the Blake family

The surname Blake was first found in Connacht (Irish: Connachta, (land of the) descendants of Conn), where the Blake family were one of the Tribes of Galway, descending from Richard Caddell (le Blac), sheriff of Connacht in 1303, who came to Ireland with Prince John in 1185, and used both the surnames Caddell and Blake. 1

The name Caddell is Welsh, and means "warlike." It was not replaced completely by Blake until the 17th century, and for three hundred years, people with these surnames were referred to in municipal records by both names.

"The Blakes of Ireland descend from Richard Blake, who accompanied Prince John to that country in 1185, and settled in co. Galway." 2 Richard Caddle was sheriff of Connaught in 1306 A.D. and was a tenant of Falway under Richard de Burgo (Burke), the Red Earl of Ulster.

Early History of the Blake family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Blake research. Another 97 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1611, 1708, 1738, 1745, 1774, 1780, 1797, 1818 and 1849 are included under the topic Early Blake History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Blake Spelling Variations

Names during the Middle Ages were often recorded under several different spelling variations during the life of their bearers. Literacy was rare at that time and so how a person's name was recorded was decided by the individual scribe. Variations of the name Blake include Blake, Caddell, Caddle and others.

Early Notables of the Blake family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was

Blake World Ranking

In the United States, the name Blake is the 403rd most popular surname with an estimated 69,636 people with that name. 3 However, in Canada, the name Blake is ranked the 680th most popular surname with an estimated 7,661 people with that name. 4 And in Newfoundland, Canada, the name Blake is the 290th popular surname with an estimated 155 people with that name. 5 Australia ranks Blake as 244th with 14,101 people. 6 New Zealand ranks Blake as 305th with 1,995 people. 7 The United Kingdom ranks Blake as 275th with 22,056 people. 8


Blake migration to the United States +

Many destitute Irish families in the 18th and 19th centuries decided to leave their homeland, which had in many ways been scarred by English colonial rule. One of the most frequent destinations for these families was North America where it was possible for an Irish family to own their own parcel of land. Many of the early settlers did find land awaiting them in British North America, or even later in America, but for the majority of immigrants that arrived as a result of the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s the ownership of land was often a long way off. These Irish people were initially put to work on such industrial projects as the building of bridges, canals, and railroads, or they worked at manufacturing positions within factories. Whenever they arrived, the Irish made enormous contributions to the infant nations of Canada and the United States. Some of the earliest immigrants to bearer the name of Blake were found through extensive research of immigration and passenger lists:

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

Blake migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

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

Blake migration to Australia +

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

Blake Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Blake 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:

Blake Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Blake 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. 18
Blake Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
Blake Settlers in West Indies in the 19th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Blake (post 1700) +


Suggested Readings for the name Blake +
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