Hickes History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The history of the name Hickes begins with the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. It is derived from the son of Richard. 1 In Old English, patronyms were formed by adding a variety of suffixes to personal names, which changed over time and from place to place. For example, after the Norman Conquest, sunu and sune, which meant son, were the most common patronymic suffixes. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the most common patronymic names included the word filius, which meant son. By the 14th century, the suffix son had replaced these earlier versions. Surnames that were formed with filius or son were more common in the north of England and it was here that the number of individuals without surnames was greatest at this time.

Early Origins of the Hickes family

The surname Hickes was first found in Yorkshire, where one of the first records of the name was found as a forename as Hikke de Sauteby who was listed there in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. 1 "The chancel [of Low Leyton in Essex] contains some elegant monuments of the family of Hickes." 2

Early English rolls provide us a glimpse of the spelling variations used through Medieval times. Today we typically need to look beyond the spellings of these entries and concentrate on the phonetic appreciation of the names. The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 included: Hikke de Sauteby; Johanna Hickson; Henricas Hikson; Willelmus Hykson. 1

Again in Yorkshire, Richard Hick was registered there in the Subsidy Rolls for 1302 and later, William Hickys was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Warwickshire in 1332. 3

Much farther to the south in the parish of St. Ewe in Cornwall, another branch of the family was found. "The manor of Tregain belonged formerly to an ancient family of the same name: in which place they resided until they removed to Golden in Probus; after which it was forfeited in the reign of Elizabeth. When the manor was dismembered, the barton became the property of Hicks, who possessed also the barton of Trevithick in this parish. At this latter place a mansion was erected by this family, in which they continued to reside until the death of John Hicks, Esquire, in 1734, in whom this branch of the family ended." 4

Early History of the Hickes family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hickes research. Another 81 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1543, 1551, 1596, 1612, 1619, 1620, 1621, 1628, 1629, 1642, 1680, 1715 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Hickes History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hickes 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. Hickes has been recorded under many different variations, including Hicks, Hickes, Hick, Hix and others.

Early Notables of the Hickes family

Notables of the family at this time include

George Hickes (1642-1715), an English divine and scholar

Migration of the Hickes family to Ireland

Some of the Hickes family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 50 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hickes migration to the United States +

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 Hickes or a variant listed above:

Hickes Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Robert Hickes, (Hicks), who landed in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621 5
Mrs. Margaret Hickes, (Hicks), who arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1623 aboard the ship "Anne" 5
Mr. Samuel Hickes, (Hicks), who arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1623 aboard the ship "Anne" 6
Miss Lydia Hickes, (Hicks), who arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1623 aboard the ship "Anne" 6
Samuel Hickes, who arrived in Virginia in 1637 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Hickes Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Tout en bon heure
Motto Translation: All in good time.

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Hutchins, Fortescue, The History of Cornwall, from the Earliest Records and Traditions to the Present Time. London: William Penaluna, 1824. Print
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)
Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's. Retrieved January 6th 2023 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm