Oake History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The ancient roots of the Oake family name are in the Anglo-Saxon culture. The name Oake comes from when the family lived near a notable oak tree or near a group of oaks. The surname Oake is derived from the Old English word ac, which means oak. The surname Oake belongs to the class of topographic surnames, which were given to people who resided near physical features such as hills, streams, churches, or types of trees.
Early Origins of the Oake family
The surname Oake was first found in Somerset where Oake is a village and civil parish that dates back to before the Norman Copnquest when it was listed as Acon in 897. The place was listed as Acha in the Domesday Book 1 and literally means "place at the oak trees" from the Old Englisk word "ac" 2
Early History of the Oake family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Oake research. Another 69 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1606, 1631, 1640, 1644, 1645, 1662, 1675, 1680, 1681 and 1719 are included under the topic Early Oake History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Oake Spelling Variations
One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Oake has appeared include Oak, Oake, Oakes, Oke, Okes and others.
Early Notables of the Oake family
Notables of the family at this time include
- Urian Oakes (1631-1681), an English-born, American minister and educator who emigrated to America in 1640, President of Harvard College (1675-1680) and (1680-1681)
Oake Ranking
In Newfoundland, Canada, the name Oake is the 358th most popular surname with an estimated 129 people with that name. 3
Oake migration to the United States +
At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Oake arrived in North America very early:
Oake Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
- Jan Oake, who arrived in New York in 1687 4
Oake Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- M.A. Oake, aged 43, who immigrated to the United States, in 1895
Oake Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
- Mary Ann Oake, aged 47, who immigrated to America from Birmingham, in 1900
- Sarah Oake, aged 32, who immigrated to the United States, in 1909
- Sarah Oake, aged 34, who landed in America, in 1911
- Richard W. Oake, aged 54, who landed in America, in 1911
- Albert C. Oake, aged 39, who settled in America from London, England, in 1913
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Oake migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Oake Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century
- Margaret Oake, aged 47, who immigrated to St. John's, Newfoundland, in 1910
Oake migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
Oake Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- Mr. James Oake, English convict who was convicted in Wiltshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Augusta Jessie" on 27 September 1834, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 5
Contemporary Notables of the name Oake (post 1700) +
- Brian Oake, American radio broadcast personality in the Minneapolis, Minnesota
- H. M. Oake, American Republican politician, Candidate for U.S. Senator from Oregon, 1908 6
- DC Stephen Robin Oake QGM (d. 2003), English police officer killed in the line of duty
- Brendan Oake (b. 1985), Australian rugby league player
- Robin Oake QPM, former Chief Constable of the Isle of Man Constabulary
- Scott Oake, Gemini Award winning Canadian sportscaster for CBC Sports
The Oake 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: Quercus robur salus patria
Motto Translation: The strength of the oak is the safety of our country.
Citations +
- Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
- Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
- The order of Common Surnames in 1955 in Newfoundland retrieved on 20th October 2021 (retrieved from Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland by E.R. Seary corrected edition ISBN 0-7735-1782-0)
- 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 14th August 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/augusta-jessie
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 6) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html