Cruise History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The name Cruise comes from a name for a brave or fierce person. The surname Cruise is derived from the Old English words "crus" or "cruse" which mean "bold, fierce." 1 Another source claims the word "cruse" means "the merry." 2
Early Origins of the Cruise family
The surname Cruise was first found in Bedfordshire (Old English: Bedanfordscir), located in Southeast-central England, formerly part of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia, where Nicholas le Cruise was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls of 1213. 1 Later, Nicolas le Cruse was listed in Bedfordshire in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1279 2 as was Robert Creuse. Richard de Crues was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls for Devon in 1214. 1
"Cruse or Cruwys (sometimes modernized as Crews) was the name of a very ancient and distinguished Devonshire family of Netherex, now scantily surviving in the county, as at Ashburton." 3
"According to D'Alton, the Irish family of this surname sprang from a Norman, who, at the Conquest, settled in Cornwall. At the invasion of Ireland under Henry II., a branch accompanied Strongbow, and obtained grants of various estates in the counties of Dublin and Meath." 4
So as to note the Irish connection for the family, we found Sir John Cruys or Cruise (died 1407) a prominent Irish military commander, diplomat and judge. He was a major landowner in County Dublin and County Meath and built Merrion Castle. The family first settled in Cornwall and emigrated to Ireland during the Strongbow invasion. The family acquired many lands, including Cruisetown in County Meath and Naul, where one Robert de Cruys (died 1292) held the lands in the time of King Edward I.
Early History of the Cruise family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cruise research. Another 45 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Cruise History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Cruise 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 Cruise include Cruise, Cruice, Crouse, Cruse and others.
Early Notables of the Cruise family
Notables of this surname at this time include:
Cruise Ranking
In the United States, the name Cruise is the 7,221st most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 5
Migration of the Cruise family to Ireland
Some of the Cruise family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 35 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Cruise 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 Cruise or a variant listed above:
Cruise Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
- Patrick Cruise, who landed in Virginia in 1723 6
- Thomas Cruise, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1773 6
- Richard Cruise, who landed in New York in 1782 6
Cruise Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- Patrick Russell Cruise, who arrived in New York, NY in 1830 6
- Anna Maria Russell Cruise, who landed in New York, NY in 1841 6
- Edward, Patrick, Peter, and Thomas Cruise, who settled in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1865
Cruise migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Cruise Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
- Elizabeth Cruise, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1813
Cruise migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
Cruise Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- Mr. John Cruise, Irish convict who was convicted in Dublin, Ireland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Boyd" on 10th March 1809, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
- Maria Cruise, aged 20, a servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Sea Park"
Cruise 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:
Cruise Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
- John Cruise, aged 31, a farm labourer, who arrived in Bluff, New Zealand aboard the ship "Adamant" in 1875 8
Contemporary Notables of the name Cruise (post 1700) +
- W. B. Cruise, American Democratic Party politician, Chair of Taylor County Democratic Party, 1917 9
- Peter A. Cruise, American politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Rhode Island, 1924 9
- Michael J. Cruise, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New York, 1928, 1932, 1936 9
- John Cruise, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Iowa Democratic State Central Committee, 1971; Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Iowa, 1972 9
- Walton Edwin Cruise (1890-1975), American Major League Baseball outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Braves
- Julee Cruise (b. 1956), American singer, and actress
- Tom Cruise Mapother (b. 1962), Academy Award-nominated, Golden Globe Award-winning American actor and film producer
- William Cruise (d. 1824), Irish legal writer, second son of Patrick Cruise of Rahue or Rathugh, Westmeath 10
- Robert Cruise (1868-1932), Canadian Member of Parliament for Dauphin, Manitoba
Citations +
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
- Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
- 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.
- "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
- 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)
- Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 27th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/Boyd
- New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 2) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
- Wikisource contributors. "Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900." Wikisource . Wikisource , 4 Jun. 2018. Web. 30 June 2020