Contents [hide]

Kirke History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

Ireland United States New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Citations

Kirke History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland
England

The surname Kirke is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. Habitation names form the other broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. The name Kirke is a "northern pronunciation of Church. Many parishes in the northern counties have this prefix, as Kirk-Heaton, Kirk-Newton, Kirk-Malew, Kirk-Linton, Kirk-Oswald, Kirk-Sandal." 1

Early Origins of the Kirke family

The surname Kirke was first found in Yorkshire, England where Robertus del Kirke and Johannes de Kirke were listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. 2

As a name found on the border with Scotland, we must look to the 15th century to find the first occurrences there. "Sir Patrick Kyrk, chaplain of the altar of S. Mary, Perth, 1456, Andrew Kyrk, witness at Arnbroath, 1459." 3 Later we found Alexander Kirk, bailie of St. Andrews, 1520. James Kirk, charter witness at Inveraray, 1608. The old Dumfriesshire surname of Kihkhok is now merged in this name. 3

Early History of the Kirke family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kirke research. Another 167 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1258, 1547, 1553, 1590, 1597, 1600, 1613, 1629, 1638, 1641, 1644, 1646, 1650, 1654, 1675, 1681, 1683, 1691, 1692, 1706, 1742 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Kirke History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kirke Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Kirk, Kirkhoe, Kirkaugh, Kirko, Kirkoe and others.

Early Notables of the Kirke family

Notable among the family at this time was

Edward Kirke (1553-1613), English poet and scholar, a close friend of the poet Spenser; Robert Kirk (1644-1692), a Scottish minister, Gaelic scholar and folklorist from Aberfoyle, Stirling, best known...
Robert Kirk (c. 1641-1692) was a Gaelic scholar, the youngest son of James Kirk, minister at Aberfoyle, Perthshire; and Lieutenant-General Percy Kirke (1646-1691) of "Kirke's Lambs," from Whitehaigh...
Sir David Kirke (c. 1597-1654), also spelled David Ker, was an adventurer, privateer and colonial governor. He is best known for his successful capture of Quebec in 1629 during the Thirty Years' War a...
George Kirke (died 1675) was a Scottish-born courtier and Member of Parliament for Clitheroe. Lieutenant General Percy Kirke (c. 1646-1691), English soldier, was the son of George Kirke, a court offic...

Migration of the Kirke family to Ireland

Some of the Kirke family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 76 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kirke migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Kirke Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Thomas Kirke, who settled in Virginia in 1638
Richard and John Kirke, who settled in Virginia in 1651
James Kirke, who settled in Virginia in 1656

Kirke Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Mr. Wilhelm Kirke, aged 27, German who arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1847 aboard the ship "Natchez"

Kirke migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Kirke Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Kirke, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Swordfish" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 12th July 1859 4

Kirke migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 5

Kirke Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Christopher Kirke, who settled in Barbados in 1663

Contemporary Notables of the name Kirke (post 1700) +

Lola Kirke (b. 1990), English-American actress and singer-songwriter
Jemima Kirke (b. 1985), English-American artist, actress and director
Sir Walter Kirke (1877-1949), English general in WWII
Simon Kirke (b. 1949), English rock drummer and songwriter, best known as the co-founder and original drummer of the supergroup Bad Company
Ian Kirke (b. 1981), English rugby league footballer
Gord Kirke (b. 1945), Canadian sports and entertainment lawyer
David Kirke, English adventurer, colonizer and governor
Basil Wharton Kirke (1893-1958), Australian radio executive with the Australian Broadcasting Commission
Álvur Kirke (b. 1939), Faroese politician
Alexis Kirke, British composer and filmmaker
... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Kirke 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: Optimum quod primum
Motto Translation: That is best that is first.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies