Show ContentsCorday History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Corday

What does the name Corday mean?

The ancestors of the Corday family brought their name to England in the wave of migration after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The name Corday is for a maker or purveyor of cord or ribbon. Checking further we found the name was derived from the Old French word corde, which means cord.

In some cases an English local name, also a form of Cardon. The Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae notes Ralph, Richard, Robert, Paganus Cardon, or Cardun, were of Normandy, 1180-95. 1

Early Origins of the Corday family

The surname Corday was first found in Essex where William Cardon or Cardun appears in the Domesday Book as one of the homines of Geoffrey de Magnaville. 2

"In 1165 the family was seated in Hants, Norfolk, Beds, and Lincoln, temp. John in Bucks; and 1325, Adam Cardun was M.P. for Nottinghamshire. " 1

Carden in Cheshire is "a township, in the parish of Tilston, union of Great Boughton, Higher division of the hundred of Broxton. A detachment of dragoons from the parliamentary garrison at Nantwich, on the 12th of June, 1643, plundered Carden Hall, and made its owner, John Leche, Esq., a prisoner." 3

The Carden Baronetcy, of Templemore in the County of Tipperary was originally from Cheshire, England, but settled at Templemore in County Tipperary around 1650.

Later some of the family were found in Worcestershire as Robert Corduan held a family seat in that shire in 1221. 4

The Carden Baronetcy, of Wimpole Street in the County of Middlesex and of Molesey in the County of Surrey was created for Sir Robert Walter Carden, 1st Baronet (1801-1888), Lord Mayor of London from 1857 to 1858.

Early History of the Corday family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Corday research. Another 79 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1327 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Corday History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Corday Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence in the eras before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate regularly changed the spellings of their names as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Corday have been found, including Cordon, Cordin, Corden, Cordwin, Cording, Cordwane, Cordwaner, Cordiner, Cordwent, Cordner, Cordiner, Cordwiner, Cordwinner, Cordwainer and many more.

Early Notables of the Corday family

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

Migration of the Corday family to Ireland

Some of the Corday family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 58 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Corday family

For many English families, the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. For such families, the shores of Ireland, Australia, and the New World beckoned. They left their homeland at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. Many arrived after the long voyage sick, starving, and without a penny. But even those were greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. Numerous English settlers who arrived in the United States and Canada at this time went on to make important contributions to the developing cultures of those countries. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Corday were among those contributors: Edward Cordin settled in Virginia in 1663; James Cordiner settled in Virginia in 1720; Jane Corden arrived in Maryland in 1665.



  1. The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
  2. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  3. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  4. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)


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