Couker Surname, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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The name Couker is of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from when the family lived in Somerset, where they lived in one of two parishes named Coker.

Couker Early Origins

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The surname Couker was first found in Somerset where there is an East, and West Coker. North Coker no longer exists. The place name dates back to at least the Domesday Book where it was listed as Cocre, part of the Houdsborough hundred and was originally the name of a stream there, a Celtic river-name meaning "crooked, winding." East Coker was the second poem of T. S. Eliot's Four Quartets and was directly connected to Eliot's ancestry and East Coker's church was later to house Eliot's ashes.

Couker Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, early Anglo-Saxon surnames like Couker are characterized by many spelling variations. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages, even literate people changed the spelling of their names. Scribes and monks in the Middle Ages spelled names they sounded, so it is common to find several variations that refer to a single person. The variations of the name Couker include: Coker, Coaker, Cokers and others.

Couker Early History

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Couker research. Another 193 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1523, 1607, 1563, 1617, 1698, 1656, 1660, 1683, 1734, 1722, 1727, 1617, 1697, 1656, 1646 and 1647 are included under the topic Early Couker History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Couker Early Notables (pre 1700)

Notables of the family at this time include John Coker (c. 1523-1607), of Mappowder, Dorset, Member of Parliament for Bletchingley in 1563; Robert Coker (c.1617-1698), of Mappowder, Dorset, Member of Parliament for...

Another 32 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Couker Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

The Great Migration

Many English families tired of political and religious strife left Britain for the new colonies in North America. Although the trip itself offered no relief - conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and many travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute - these immigrants believed the opportunities that awaited them were worth the risks. Once in the colonies, many of the families did indeed prosper and, in turn, made significant contributions to the culture and economies of the growing colonies. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families has revealed a number of immigrants bearing the name Couker or a variant listed above: Robert Coker who sailed on the "Mary and John" and settled in Dedham, Massachusetts in 1632; John Coker settled in Virginia in 1623; another John arrived in New England in 1775. The scion of the distinguished family of the U.S.A. was James Lide Coker of Darlington, South Carolina..

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Citations

^ Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)

Other References

Markale, J. Celtic Civilization. London: Gordon & Cremonesi, 1976. Print.
Weis, Frederick Lewis, Walter Lee Sheppard and David Faris. Ancestral Roots of Sixty Colonists Who Came to New England Between 1623 and 1650 7th Edition. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0806313676).
Colletta, John P. They Came In Ships. Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1993. Print.
Burke, John Bernard Ed. The Roll of Battle Abbey. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing. Print.
Holt, J.C. Ed. Domesday Studies. Woodbridge: Boydell, 1987. Print. (ISBN 0-85115-477-8).
Colletta, John P. They Came In Ships. Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1993. Print.
Browning, Charles H. Americans of Royal Descent. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing. Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds. Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8).
Leeson, Francis L. Dictionary of British Peerages. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1986. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-1121-5).
Dunkling, Leslie. Dictionary of Surnames. Toronto: Collins, 1998. Print. (ISBN 0004720598).
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The Couker Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Couker Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname.

This page was last modified on 16 September 2013 at 20:36.