Show ContentsBleyck History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

There art two possible origins of the Irish surname Bleyck. The first is that it originated from the Gaelic "O Blathmhaic," which translates as "descendant of Blathmhac," a personal name for the Gaelic "blath" meaning "flower", "blossom", "fame", "prosperity." The second was that the name could have been derived from the Old English word "blaec" meaning "dark" or "swarthy."

Early Origins of the Bleyck family

The surname Bleyck was first found in Connacht (Irish: Connachta, (land of the) descendants of Conn), where the Blake family were one of the Tribes of Galway, descending from Richard Caddell (le Blac), sheriff of Connacht in 1303, who came to Ireland with Prince John in 1185, and used both the surnames Caddell and Blake. 1

The name Caddell is Welsh, and means "warlike." It was not replaced completely by Blake until the 17th century, and for three hundred years, people with these surnames were referred to in municipal records by both names.

"The Blakes of Ireland descend from Richard Blake, who accompanied Prince John to that country in 1185, and settled in co. Galway." 2 Richard Caddle was sheriff of Connaught in 1306 A.D. and was a tenant of Falway under Richard de Burgo (Burke), the Red Earl of Ulster.

Early History of the Bleyck family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bleyck research. Another 97 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1611, 1708, 1738, 1745, 1774, 1780, 1797, 1818 and 1849 are included under the topic Early Bleyck History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bleyck Spelling Variations

During the Middle Ages, a standardized literary language known by the general population of Ireland was a thing of fiction. When a person's name was recorded by one of the few literate scribes, it was up that particular scribe to decide how to spell an individual's name. So a person could have several spelling variations of his name recorded during a single lifetime. Research into the name Bleyck revealed many variations, including Blake, Caddell, Caddle and others.

Early Notables of the Bleyck family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Sir Francis Blake (1708-1780), 1st Baronet, mathematician, descended from the house of Menlough, co. Galway. His father, Robert Blake, by his marriage with Sarah, third daughter of his kinsman, Sir Francis Blake, knight, of Ford Castle, Northumberland, became possessed of the Twisell estate, in the county of Durham...
Another 56 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bleyck Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Bleyck family

Thousands of Irish left in their homeland in the 18th and 19th centuries to escape the religious and political discrimination they experienced primarily at the hands of the English, and in the search of a plot of land to call their own. These immigrants arrived at the eastern shores of North America, early on settling and breaking the land, and, later, building the bridges, canals, and railroads essential to the emerging nations of United States and Canada. Many others would toil for low wages in the dangerous factories of the day. Although there had been a steady migration of Irish to North America over these years, the greatest influx of Irish immigrants came to North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name Bleyck or a variant listed above: William Blake who came from Essex, England, sailed on the "Mary and John" in 1630 and settled in Dorchester, Massachusetts; George Blake settled in Gloucester in 1640.



  1. MacLysaght, Edward, Supplement to Irish Families. Baltimore: Genealogical Book Company, 1964. Print.
  2. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.


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