Show ContentsHockly History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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  • England
Hockly Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Etymology of Hockly

What does the name Hockly mean?

The lineage of the name Hockly begins with the Anglo-Saxon tribes in Britain. It is a result of when they lived in the regions of Hockley in Essex and Wales. The surname Hockly originally derived from the Old English word hoccsleah which referred to someone who lived close to hills. 1

The Hockey variant was derived from the "Anglo-Saxon personal name Hoc, Hoc(c)a, with the diminutive suffix -y." 2

Early Origins of the Hockly family

The surname Hockly was first found in Essex at Hockley, a parish, in the union and hundred of Rochford, about 2¼ miles from Rayleigh. 3 4 5 This place dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was known as Hocheleia. 6

And this is where we found Michael de Hockele listed in the Feet of Fines for 1203. Over one hundred years later in Worcestershire, Nicholas de Hockelaye was found in the Subsidy Rolls for 1332. 7

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had only listing for the family, that of William de Hokkele in Huntingdonshire. 8 In Somerset, Thomas de Hokkeleghe was listed there 1 Edward III (during the first year of Edward III's reign.) 9

Early History of the Hockly family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hockly research. Another 108 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1220, 1273, 1593, 1606 and 1707 are included under the topic Early Hockly History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hockly Spelling Variations

Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Hockly has undergone many spelling variations, including Hockley, Hockly, Hokeley, Hokelley and others.

Early Notables of the Hockly family

More information is included under the topic Early Hockly Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hockly migration to the United States +

To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Hockly were among those contributors:

Hockly Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • James Hockly, who arrived in Maryland in 1633 10
  • Rowld Hockly, who landed in Virginia in 1653 10
  • Hannah Hockly, who landed in Virginia in 1695 10

Contemporary Notables of the name Hockly (post 1700) +

  • Frank Franklin Hockly (1865-1936), England-born, New Zealand politician, Reform Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand for Roturua (1919-1928)
  • Stuart Hockly (b. 1973), South African cricketer who played in three first-class matches for Boland in 1994/95
  1. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  2. Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
  3. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  4. Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
  5. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  6. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  7. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  8. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  9. Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
  10. 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)

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