Meckley History, Family Crest & Coats of ArmsEtymology of MeckleyWhat does the name Meckley mean? The Welsh Meckley surname is thought to derived from name of the village of Machen, located near Caerphilly, in the county of Monmouthshire. Alternatively, the name could have been derived from the name of an ancestor as in 'the son of Matthew.' 1 Early Origins of the Meckley familyThe surname Meckley was first found in Monmouthshire (Welsh: Sir Fynwy), at Machen, a parish, in the union of Newport, partly in the hundred of Wentlloog, South Wales. 2 Early History of the Meckley familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Meckley research. Another 65 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1541, 1600, 1614 and 1675 are included under the topic Early Meckley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Meckley Spelling VariationsThe Welsh have an extremely large amount of spelling variations of their native surnames to their credit. It was up to the priest or the scribe taking the official records to determine how the spoken name was to be made literal. As time progressed, the old Brythonic names of Wales were recorded in English, which was especially problematic since the English language had extreme difficulty recording the highly inflected sounds of Cymraeg. Spelling variations were, however, also carried out according to an individual's design: a branch loyalty within the family, a religious adherence, or even patriotic affiliations could be indicated by spelling variations of one's name. The spelling variations of the name Meckley have included Machen, Machin, Machon, Mackon, Makin, Makins, MacMacken and many more. Early Notables of the Meckley familyProminent amongst the family during the late Middle Ages was Thomas Machen (c. 1541-1614), an English mercer who was mayor of Gloucester three times, Member of Parliament for Gloucester in 1614; Bathsua Reginald Makin (c.1600-c.1675) English middle-class proto-feminist who... Migration of the Meckley family to IrelandSome of the Meckley family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. Migration of the Meckley familyMany Welsh families joined their Scottish and Irish neighbors during the late 1800s and early 1900s in seeking refuge in North America. Like the Irish and Scottish, many Welsh anxiously awaited the work, freedom, and opportunities that they believed lay in North America. Those who did journey over to the United States and what became known as Canada often realized those dreams, but only through much toil and perseverance. Whenever and however these Welsh immigrants arrived in North America, they were instrumental in the creation of the industry, commerce, and cultural heritage within those two developing nations. In the immigration and passenger lists a number of early immigrants bearing the name Meckley were found: Bernard, Charles, Hugh, James, John, Michael, Patrick, Steven and Thomas Mackin all arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania between 1840 and 1860; Hugh, Michael, Patrick, Thomas and William Macken also arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860.
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