The ancestors of the name Kearse date back to the days of the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from their residence in Kersey, a parish in Suffolk. The place-name Kersey is derived from the Old English elements cærse, which means watercress, and eg, the old English word for island. It was recorded as Cæresige c. 995, and as Careseia in the Domesday Book, [1] compiled in 1086. The name as a total means "island where the watercress grows." The surname is derived from the place-name. In the early Middle Ages, local surnames were often proceeded by the word de or atte, which meant of and at, respectively. This custom was brought to England by the Normans after they conquered the Saxon Nobility at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The surname as a whole, de Kearse, meant "of Kersey." Eventually, the use of de and atte declined, as Old English and Old Norman fused into Old English over the next few centuries.
The surname Kearse was first found in Suffolk at Kersey, a village and a civil parish in the Babergh district which today includes the hamlets of Kersey Tye, Kersey Upland, Wicker Street Green, and William's Green. Originally part of the hundred of Cosford, it comprised about 1,465 acres and an Augustine priory was founded there at an early period dedicated to St. Mary and St. Anthony; at the Dissolution it was granted to King's College, Cambridge. [2] Kersey is the name of a coarse woollen cloth having derived its name from kersey yarn and ultimately from the village of Kersey.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kearse research. Another 67 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1272, 1616, 1690 and 1720 are included under the topic Early Kearse History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Kearse has been spelled many different ways. Before English spelling became standardized over the last few hundred years, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. As the English language changed in the Middle Ages, absorbing pieces of Latin and French, as well as other languages, the spelling of people's names also changed considerably, even over a single lifetime. Many variations of the name Kearse have been found, including Kersey, Kercey, Keresey, Kearsey and others.
Another 32 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Kearse Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
In the United States, the name Kearse is the 7,672nd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. [3]