Ankey History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Ankey

What does the name Ankey mean?

The surname Ankey is a patronymic surname created from the Middle English given name Hank.

Early Origins of the Ankey family

The surname Ankey was first found in Lincolnshire where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor. The Saxon influence of English history diminished after the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The language of the courts was French for the next three centuries and the Norman ambience prevailed. But Saxon surnames survived and the family name was first referenced in the year 1191 when Anke of Ankinton held estates in that shire.

Early History of the Ankey family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ankey research. Another 134 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1275, 1290 and 1580 are included under the topic Early Ankey History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ankey Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Ankey family name include Hanks, Hankes, Hanke, Hank, Anke, Ankes, Hancke and many more.

Early Notables of the Ankey family

More information is included under the topic Early Ankey Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Ankey family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Ankey surname or a spelling variation of the name include: George Hanks, who was a servant sent to the "Foreign Plantations" of Virginia in 1676; John Hanks, who came to the Virginia Colony in 1690; Ann Hanks, who arrived in Georgia in 1738.