Heys Surname, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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Heys is a name of ancient Norman origin. It arrived in England with the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Heys family lived in Herefordshire. This name, however, does not refer to that municipality, but is topographical in nature and indicates that the original bearer lived near an enclosure of some sort. It derives from the Old English word haye, which means enclosure.

Heys Early Origins

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The surname Heys was first found in Herefordshire where Bartholomew de la Hase held a fief in 1165. He claimed descent from Hayes near Blois, Normandy. For this early origin, the name was listed in a few locations, specifically, Norfolk, where some of the first records of the name were Edorard de lis Heys and John del Heys who were listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. The same rolls listed Nicholaa de la Hay in Lincolnshire. William de Hayes was listed in Northamptonshire in the 13th century as a follower of John Giffard (1232-1299), the English nobleman, but had his house plundered after the Battle of Evesham in 1265.

Heys Spelling Variations

Endless spelling variations are a prevailing characteristic of Norman surnames. Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules, and the introduction of Norman French added an unfamiliar ingredient to the English linguistic stew. French and Latin, the languages of the court, also influenced spellings. Finally, Medieval scribes generally spelled words according to how they sounded, so one person was often referred to by different spellings in different documents. The name has been spelled Hayes, Hayse, Hays and others.

Heys Early History

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Heys research. Another 179 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1637, 1694, 1663, 1672, 1641, 1712, 1686, 1703, 1768 and 1831 are included under the topic Early Heys History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Heys Early Notables (pre 1700)

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Sir Thomas Hayes of London; Sir James Hayes (1637-1694), founding Fellow of the Royal Society in 1663, Secretary to Prince Rupert and first Deputy-Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company in...

Another 37 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Heys Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Heys In Ireland

Some of the Heys family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. Another 193 words (14 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

The Great Migration

To escape the political and religious persecution within England at the time, many English families left for the various British colonies abroad. The voyage was extremely difficult, though, and the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving. But for those who made it, the trip was most often worth it. Many of the families who arrived went on to make valuable contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families reveals a number of immigrants bearing the name Heys or a variant listed above:

Heys Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Fredk Heys, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1753 ^[4]CITATION[CLOSE]
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)
Johan Heys, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1786 ^[4]CITATION[CLOSE]
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)
Danl Heys, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1786 ^[4]CITATION[CLOSE]
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)

Heys Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

David Heys, English convict from Chester, who was transported aboard the "Asia" on September 3rd, 1820, settling in New South Wales, Australia ^[5]CITATION[CLOSE]
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1820 with 192 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1820

Contemporary Notables of the name Heys (post 1700)

John Edward Heys (b. 1948), American filmmaker and actor
Stephen Heys (b. 1879), English professional footballer from Accrington
Howard M. Heys, Canadian cryptographer and professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Memorial University of Newfoundland

Heys Historic Events

HMS Hood

Mr. William W Heys (b. 1908), English Sick Berth Attendant serving for the Royal Navy from Healey, Lancashire, England, who sailed into battle on the HMS Hood and died on 24th May 1941 in the sinking ^[6]CITATION[CLOSE]
H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm

Heys Family Crest Products

Citations

^ Hanks, Patricia and Flavia Hodges, A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988. Print. (ISBN 0-19-211592-8)
^ 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)
^ Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
^ 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)
^ State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1820 with 192 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1820
^ H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm

Other References

Egle, William Henry. Pennsylvania Genealogies Scotch-Irish and German. Harrisburg: L.S. Hart, 1886. Print.
Burke, Sir Bernard. General Armory Of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales. Ramsbury: Heraldry Today. Print.
Foster, Joseph. Dictionary of Heraldry Feudal Coats of Arms and Pedigrees. London: Bracken Books, 1989. Print. (ISBN 1-85170-309-8).
Leeson, Francis L. Dictionary of British Peerages. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1986. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-1121-5).
Filby, P. William and Mary K Meyer. Passenger and Immigration Lists Index in Four Volumes. Detroit: Gale Research, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8).
Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at Galveston Texas 1896-1951. National Archives Washington DC. Print.
Crozier, William Armstrong Edition. Crozier's General Armory A Registry of American Families Entitled to Coat Armor. New York: Fox, Duffield, 1904. Print.
Mills, A.D. Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4).
Shirley, Evelyn Philip. Noble and Gentle Men of England Or Notes Touching The Arms and Descendants of the Ancient Knightley and Gentle Houses of England Arranged in their Respective Counties 3rd Edition. Westminster: John Bowyer Nichols and Sons, 1866. Print.
Le Patourel, John. The Norman Empire. New York: Oxford University Press, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-19-822525-3).
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The Heys Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Heys 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 22 September 2015 at 08:22.