Uniack History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• Ireland

Etymology of Uniack

When the Stongbow settlers arrived in Ireland, they quickly learned that the Irish had a pre-established system of hereditary surnames. The name Uniack is an occupational surname, which was primarily from the Anglo-Norman culture. There were a few Irish occupational names, however, previous to the arrival of the Strongbownians, so this Anglo-Norman tradition was not too incongruous within the island. Occupational surnames were derived from a word describing the actual job done by the initial name bearer. The Strongbownians frequently prefixed these names with the French word le, meaning the, but this custom quickly died out in Ireland. The surname Uniack came from a common occupational name for a valued military officer. The surname Uniack is derived from the expression Unicus Est. According to tradition, during the bitter 13th century feuds between the two powerful Anglo-Norman families of the Fitzgeralds and the Butlers, a Commander who sought help to secure a position pointed to a particularly valued captain and said Unicus Est, which means Hei is the only one to undertake this service. The name Garde was also used as a synonym.

Early Origins of the Uniack family

Early History of the Uniack family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Uniack research. Another 87 words (6 lines of text) covering the year 1976 is included under the topic Early Uniack History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Uniack Spelling Variations

Medieval scribes and church officials spelled the names as they sounded, so a name was often spelled many different ways during the lifetime of a single person. The investigation of the origin of the name Uniack revealed many spelling variations including Uniacke, Uniake, Uniack, Uniak, Garde, Gard and others.

Early Notables of the Uniack family

• Thomas Uniacke of Youghal