Show ContentsOakearde History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The ancient Anglo-Saxon surname Oakearde came from the Old French personal names Achart and Aquart. Achard was a personal name in the Domesday Book of 1086. 1

Early Origins of the Oakearde family

The surname Oakearde was first found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 where Henry Achard, Huntingdonshire; and Richard Achard, Yorkshire were listed. Later the Yoprkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed Johannes Hachet, Mergareta Hachet, and Robertus Achard. 2

Early History of the Oakearde family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Oakearde research. Another 99 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1150, 1154, 1189, 1273, 1379, 1636, 1679, 1695, 1697 and 1787 are included under the topic Early Oakearde History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Oakearde Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Oakearde family name include Hatchard, Hachard, Atchard, Achard and others.

Early Notables of the Oakearde family

Distinguished members of the family include John Eachard (1636?-1697), an English divine and satirist from Suffolk, twice Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University (in 1679 and 1695.) "He governed his college with the utmost care and fidelity, and to the general satisfaction of the whole university. He procured many donations...
Another 47 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Oakearde Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Oakearde family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Oakearde surname or a spelling variation of the name include: P. Achard, who sailed to Louisiana in 1719; Michael and Joseph Achard, who came to Philadelphia, Pa. in 1796; and A. Achard, who arrived in San Francisco, Cal. in 1850..



  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  2. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)


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