Hawkay is an ancient
Anglo-Saxon surname that came from the Old English
personal name Hafoc, which means
hawk. However, the surname Hawkay may have been applied as a
nickname to someone with a wild or cruel disposition. It may also be an
occupational surname given to a "hawker" or someone who held land in exchange for providing hawks to a lord. Lastly, the surname Hawkay may be a
local surname given to someone who lived in a nook or corner; in this case, the surname is derived from the Old English word
halke, which means
nook or
corner.Early Origins of the Hawkay family
The surname Hawkay was first found in
Lincolnshire where Jocelin de Hawke was listed in the
Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. While this is the first listing of the name, years later the
Yorkshire Poll Tax Records of 1379 list: Thomas Hauke; Thomas Hauke, coteler; Adam Hawke; and Johannes Hawke.
[1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6) On the more romantic side, one reference claims the name derives from the "bird: allusive to keenness of disposition."
[2]CITATION[CLOSE]
Lowe, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Early History of the Hawkay family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hawkay research.
Another 179 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1066, 1705 and 1781 are included under the topic Early Hawkay History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Hawkay Spelling Variations
The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,
spelling variations are common among early
Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Hawkay has been recorded under many different variations, including Hawk, Hawke, Hawkes, Hauk, Hauke and others.
Early Notables of the Hawkay family (pre 1700)
Another 19 words (1 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Hawkay Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Hawkay family to the New World and Oceana
For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded
England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Hawkay or a variant listed above: Mathew and Margaret Hawke, who arrived in Boston in 1630 and later moved to Salem; John Hawke, who arrived in Lynn, MA in 1630; Mary Hawkes, who came to Virginia in 1635.