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Etymology of Fish

What does the name Fish mean?

The family name of a Jew was typically left to the individual person up until the end of the 18th century. Majority, especially in Germany and eastern Europe, still followed the custom having their father’s name included in their name. Whereas, Jews in Spain, Portugal, and Italy had already adopted the practice of using fixed family names. 1

The name Fish comes from the Yiddish word "fish" meaning, not surprisingly, "fish." The Old English "fisc" also means "fish," and Fish is a relatively common surname among English families.

Fish Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Fish, Fichbach, Fischlin, Fishson, Fischelovitch and many more.

Fish Ranking

the United States, the name Fish is the 1,377th most popular surname with an estimated 22,383 people with that name. 2

Fish migration to the United States +



Fish Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • William Fish, who settled in Connecticut in 1630
  • John Fish, who settled in Boston in 1630
  • Gabriel Fish, who settled in New Hampshire in 1632
  • Jonathan Fish, who landed in Lynn, Massachusetts in 1635 4
  • John Fish, who landed in Connecticut in 1637 4
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Fish Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Tho Fish, who landed in Virginia in 1705 4
  • Josa Fish, aged 19, who landed in Virginia in 1773 4
Fish Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Anthony Fish, who landed in New York in 1822 4
  • Charles Fish, aged 35, who arrived in Key West, Ha in 1837 4
  • Mrs. Ellen Fish, aged 42, British settler who arrived in New Orleans aboard the ship "Hanover" on 2nd May 1842
  • Mr. Geo Fish, aged 15, British settler who arrived in New Orleans aboard the ship "Hanover" on 2nd May 1842
  • Mr. John Fish, aged 42, British painter who arrived in New Orleans aboard the ship "Hanover" on 2nd May 1842
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Fish migration to Canada +

Fish Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Michael Fish, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1760
  • Michael Fish, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1761
  • Mr. Jeremiah Fish U.E., "Fitz" born in Pennsylvania, USA who settled in Pennfield, Kings County, New Brunswick c. 1783 he is listed as signing the Quaker Loyalist Agreement 5
Fish Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Thurston Fish, who arrived in Canada in 1836

Fish migration to Australia +

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

First Fleet
  • Mr. John Fish, (b. 1745), aged 44, British settler convicted in Hampshire, England in 1788, sentenced to 7 years for Stealing, transported aboard the ship "Neptune, Scarborough or Surprize" leaving in 1789 arriving in New South Wales, Australia in 1790 3
Following the First Fleet, other convicts and early settlers arriving in Australia include:

Fish Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. William Fish, English convict who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Aurora" on 18th June 1835, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 6
  • John Fish, English convict from Lincoln, who was transported aboard the "Agincourt" on July 6, 1844, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia 7
  • Mr. Isaiah Fish, English convict who was convicted in Essex, England for 15 years, transported aboard the "China" on 67th January 1846, arriving in Norfolk Island, Australia 8
  • Henry Fish, aged 20, who arrived in South Australia in 1849 aboard the ship "Indian" 9
  • Henry Fish, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Indian" in 1849 9
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Fish 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:

Fish Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Mr. John Fish, British labourer travelling from London aboard the ship "Victory " arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 17th October 1863 10
  • Anna M. Fish, aged 18, a servant, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Hindostan" in 1875
  • Clement Charles Fish, aged 46, a labourer, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Waimea" in 1876
  • Elizabeth Fish, aged 48, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Waimea" in 1876
  • Eliza Fish, aged 15, a servant, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Waimea" in 1876

Fish migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 11
Fish Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Christopher Fish, who settled in Barbados in 1635
  • Christopher Fish, aged 24, who landed in Barbados in 1635 4
  • Mr. Christopher Fish, (b. 1611), aged 24, British settler travelling from London, England aboard the ship "Anne and Elizabeth" arriving in Barbados in 1635 12

Contemporary Notables of the name Fish (post 1700) +

  • Stuyvesant Fish (1851-1923), American president of the Illinois Central Railroad
  • Preserved Fish (1766-1846), American shipping merchant in New York City, President of the Bank of America
  • Farnum Thayer Fish (1896-1978), early American airplane pilot known as the "Boy Aviator", at the age of 17, he was the "youngest licensed aviator in the world"
  • Bert Fish (1875-1943), American judge, real-estate operator, finance director, philanthropist, US Ambassador to Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Portugal
  • Major-General Irwing Andrews Fish (1881-1948), American Commanding General 32nd Division (1938-1942) 13
  • Matt Fish (b. 1969), retired American professional NBA basketball player
  • Mardy Simpson Fish (b. 1981), American professional tennis player, American No. 1 in the ATP rankings as of April 2011
  • Hamilton Fish (1808-1893), American politician
  • Cliff Fish (1950-2023), English musician, best known for his work in the Paper Lace, a British pop/rock band from Nottingham
  • ... (Another 8 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Dunbar
  • Mr. George Fish, Australian crew member who died aboard the ship "Dunbar" when she sunk off the coast of Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour), Australia on 28th August 1857
  • Miss Aubrey  Fish (1910-1917), Canadian resident from Protestant Orphanage, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 14
  • Mr. Wilfred Fish, British Stoker 2ne Class, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and died in the sinking 15
  • Miss Elizabeth Fish, factory worker in the Pemberton Mill on 10th January 1860 when the mill collapsed trapping 900 workers as rescue attempts continued into the night, an oil lantern was knocked over further engulfing the trapped workers in fire, she survived without injury
  • Mrs. Sarah Mary Fish, Canadian 2nd Class passenger from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, who sailed aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking by escaping in life boat 15 16
  • ... (Another 3 entries are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Suggested Readings for the name Fish +

  • The Ancestors and Descendants of Simeon Fish, Minuteman of Mason, N.H. and Pioneer of Lincoln County, Maine by Nathan Hale.
  • Fish Families Records and Lines by Laurine Mae Palmerton Logsdon.
  1. Kaganoff, Benzion C. A Dictionary of Jewish names and their history. Schocken Books, 1977. Digital
  2. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  3. Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 4th February 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships
  4. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  5. Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
  6. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 20th August 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/aurora
  7. State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2014, November 24) Agincourt voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1844 with 226 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/agincourt/1844
  8. Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 5th February 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/china
  9. State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) The INDIAN 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Indian.htm
  10. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  11. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  12. Pilgrim Ship Lists Early 1600's. Retrieved 23rd September 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
  13. Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2012, February 29) Irwing Fish. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Fish/Irwing_Andrews/USA.html
  14. Halifax Explosion Book of Remembrance | Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. (Retrieved 2014, June 23) . Retrieved from https://maritimemuseum.novascotia.ca/what-see-do/halifax-explosion/halifax-explosion-book-remembrance
  15. HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html
  16. Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 7) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/

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