Roche History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms 

Origins Available: 
  France 
  Ireland 
  England 


Non-Gaelic elements made their first appearance in Irish nomenclature after the Strongbow settlers began to arrive on Irish shores. Although the Irish already had an established a system of hereditary surnames, the Anglo-Normans also brought their own traditions with them when they arrived. The two systems were not extremely conflicting, and eventually drew upon one another. Although local surnames, such as Roche, were not entirely unknown to the Irish, this form of surname was much more popular with the Strongbownians. Local names were taken from the names of a place or a geographical feature where the person lived, held land, or was born. Originally, these place names were prefixed by de, which means from in French. This type of prefix was eventually either made a part of the surname, if the place name began with a vowel, or was eliminated entirely. The local names of these Anglo-Norman invaders first referred to places in Normandy, or more typically England, but eventually for those Strongbownians or their descendents that remained in Ireland, the local names really did begin to refer to local places or geographical features of the island. The Roche family appears to have originally lived in a rocky area or near some notable rock. The surname Roche is derived from the Old French word roche, which means rock. The surname Roche 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. The Gaelic form of the surname Roche is de Róiste.

Early Origins of the Roche family

The surname Roche was first found in County Limerick (Irish: Luimneach) located in Southwestern Ireland, in the province of Munster, where they were granted lands by Strongbow whom they accompanied into Ireland during the Anglo-Norman invasion of 1172.

This was about the time that "the manor of Tregarrick or Tregorrick alias Treroche, belonged, prior to the Norman Conquest, to an ancient British family thence denominated Treroche, and afterwards De Rupe, or De la Roche. Of this family, Ralph de Rupe held in Cornwall by the tenure of knight service, three knight's fees of land in 1189. Another of this family according to tradition, was an officer in the Irish war under John John, Earl of Moreton and Cornwall; and when the latter became king of England, the former was again employed on a similar expedition, in which he acquitted himself so much to the satisfaction of his royal master, that he was rewarded with the forfeited lands of various rebels. This enabled him to build the castle of Roche in that country in 1220, and to become the head of the distinguished family of De Roche in Ireland." 1

Early History of the Roche family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Roche research. Another 97 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1573, 1576, 1588, 1594, 1595, 1600, 1624, 1629, 1635, 1640, 1643, 1660 and 1929 are included under the topic Early Roche History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Roche Spelling Variations

During the Middle Ages, a single person often had their name recorded by church officials and scribes many different ways. Names were typically spelt as they sounded, which resulted in many different spelling variations. The many versions of the name Roche to have been recorded over the years include: Roche, Roach, Roache, LaRoche, LaRoach, DeLaRoach, Roack, Roch, Roiche, St.Roche, Rocheland, Rochellan and many more.

Early Notables of the Roche family

Notable amongst the family up to this time was

Roche World Ranking

In the United States, the name Roche is the 2,053rd most popular surname with an estimated 14,922 people with that name. 2 However, in Newfoundland, Canada, the name Roche is ranked the 278th most popular surname with an estimated 160 people with that name. 3 And in France, the name Roche is the 62nd popular surname with an estimated 37,560 people with that name. 4 Australia ranks Roche as 745th with 5,219 people. 5


Roche 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 Roche:

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

Roche migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Roche Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century
Roche Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Roche migration to Australia +

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

Roche Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Roche 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:

Roche Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Roche (post 1700) +


The Roche 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: Mon Dieu est ma roche
Motto Translation: My God is my rock.
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