The ancestors of the bearers of the Lightay family name are thought have lived in ancient Anglo-SaxonEngland. They were first found in a clearing or glade. The surname Lightay is derived from the Old English word leoht, which means light and is theorized to specifically mean light place in this case. The surname Lightay belongs to the class of topographic surnames, which were given to people who resided near physical features such as hills, streams, churches, or types of trees.
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Early Origins of the Lightay family
The surname Lightay was first found in Somerset where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.
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Early History of the Lightay family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lightay research. Another 70 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1529, 1546, 1564, 1578, 1588 and 1607 are included under the topic Early Lightay History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Lightay Spelling Variations
Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Lightay include Light, Lyte, Lite and others.
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Early Notables of the Lightay family
Another 50 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Lightay Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Migration of the Lightay family
Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Lightay or a variant listed above: Elias Light settled in Virginia in 1637 along with Richard; George Light settled in Virginia in 1652 with Mary; William and John Light settled in Virginia in 1653..
England
