Hackett History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms 

Origins Available: 
  England 
  Ireland 


The Strongbownians added their own naming traditions to the eastern region of Ireland to which they arrived. The impact of this new tradition was not extremely disruptive to the pre-existing Irish tradition because the two had many similarities. Both cultures made significant use of hereditary surnames. And like the Irish, the Strongbownians often used prefixes to build patronymic surnames, which are names based on the given name of the initial bearer's father or another older relative. Strongbow's followers often created names that were built with the prefix Fitz-, which was derived from the French word fils, and ultimately from the Latin filius, both of which mean son. They also used diminutive suffixes such as -ot, -et, -un, -in, or -el, and occasionally even two suffixes combined to form a double diminutive such as -el-in, -el-ot, -in-ot, and -et-in, to build patronymic names. The surname Hackett is derived from the medieval given names Hack or Hake. These English names were derived from the Old Norse name Haki, which is a cognate of the English name Hook and was originally given to someone with a hunched figure or a hooked nose. Before being imported to Ireland, the surname Hackett was chiefly popular in the western midlands of England. The Gaelic form of the name Hackett is Haicéid.

Early Origins of the Hackett family

The surname Hackett was first found in County Kilkenny (Irish: Cill Chainnigh), the former Kingdom of Osraige (Ossory), located in Southeastern Ireland in the province of Leinster, where they had been granted lands by Strongbow for their assistance in the invasion of Ireland in 1172.

They were also granted lands in counties Carlow, Kildare and one branch moved into Connacht where "they formed a distinct if small sept which was known as MacHackett, their seat being Castle Hackett, six miles south-east of Tuam." 1

They were originally from Harcourt in Normandy and their name appears on the Honour Roll of the Battell Abbey as being present at the Battle of Hastings. "The Hackets of Niton on the Isle of Wight were descendants of Haket on the Battle Abbey Roll. The eventual heiress, Agnes, dau. of John Hackett, Esq. of Niton, m. John Lye, Esq., of Dorsetshire, and was mother of Anne Lye, wife of Sir James Woraley, constable of Carisbrook Castle." 2

"Dominus Paganus de Haket, another soldier at Hastings accompanied Henry II to Ireland where he acquired broad lands and seigneuries there; and his descendants, generation after generation, were parliamentary Barons, and potent Magnates in the sister kingdom. "2

Early History of the Hackett family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hackett research. Another 54 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1180, 1195, 1559, 1566, 1592, 1601, 1621, 1625, 1626, 1670, 1676, 1689 and 1706 are included under the topic Early Hackett History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hackett Spelling Variations

During the lifetime of an individual person, his name was often spelt by church officials and medieval scribes the way it sounded. An examination of the many different origins of each name has revealed many spelling variations for the name: Hackett, Hackert, Hacket, Halkett and others.

Early Notables of the Hackett family

Notable amongst the family up to this time was

Hackett World Ranking

In the United States, the name Hackett is the 1,689th most popular surname with an estimated 17,409 people with that name. 3 However, in Newfoundland, Canada, the name Hackett is ranked the 569th most popular surname with an estimated 80 people with that name. 4 And in Australia, the name Hackett is the 938th popular surname with an estimated 4,217 people with that name. 5


Hackett migration to the United States +

Ireland's Great Potato Famine left the country's inhabitants in extreme poverty and starvation. Many families left their homeland for North America for the promise of work, freedom and land ownership. Although the Irish were not free of economic and racial discrimination in North America, they did contribute greatly to the rapid development of bridges, canals, roads, and railways. Eventually, they would be accepted in other areas such as commerce, education, and the arts. An examination of immigration and passenger lists revealed many bearing the name Hackett:

Hackett Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
Hackett Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
Hackett Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Hackett migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

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

Hackett migration to Australia +

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

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

Hackett 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:

Hackett Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Hackett 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. 14
Hackett Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Hackett (post 1700) +


The Hackett Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Spes mea Deus
Motto Translation: God is my hope.


Suggested Readings for the name Hackett +
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