Show ContentsLewes History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Lewes

What does the name Lewes mean?

The roots of the Celtic name of Lewes lie amid the rugged landscape of Wales. This old, proud name is from the personal name Lewis, an Anglicized form of the Welsh name Llewellyn. This name is often explained as meaning "lion-like," but is in fact probably derived from the Welsh word "llyw," which means "leader." Alternatively, the name Lewis is also an Anglo-French form of the Old Frankish name Hludwig, which means "loud battle."

Early Origins of the Lewes family

The surname Lewes was first found in Glamorganshire (Welsh: Sir Forgannwg), a region of South Wales, anciently part of the Welsh kingdom of Glywysing, where the family held a seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Lewes family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lewes research. Another 119 words (8 lines of text) covering the year 1890 is included under the topic Early Lewes History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lewes Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Lewis, Lewiss, Lewess, Lews, Llewys, Llewis, Lewwis, Llewess and many more.

Early Notables of the Lewes family

More information is included under the topic Early Lewes Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Lewes family to Ireland

Some of the Lewes family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 57 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Lewes migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Lewes Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • John Lewes, who landed in Jamestown, Va in 1607 1
  • Roger Lewes, who arrived in Virginia in 1617 1
  • Mr. George Lewes, aged 19, who arrived in Virginia aboard the ship "Edwine" in 1617 2
  • William Lewes, who arrived in New England in 1632 1
  • Sarah Lewes, who landed in New England in 1634 1
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Lewes Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • James Lewes, aged 18, who landed in America in 1821 1

Lewes 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:

Lewes Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Thomas Lewes, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Alma" in 1857
  • Ann Lewes, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Alma" in 1857
  • Richard Lewes, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Alma" in 1857
  • Emma Lewes, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Alma" in 1857
  • Mr. N Lewes, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Scimitar" arriving in Port Chalmers, Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 5th March 1874 3
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Lewes 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. 4
Lewes Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • David Lewes, aged 28, who arrived in Barbados in 1635 1
  • Mr. Richard Lewes, (b. 1609), aged 26, British settler traveling aboard the ship "William and John" arriving in St Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Lewes (post 1700) +

  • George Henry Lewes (1817-1878), English writer
  • Sir Watkin Lewes Griffies -Williams (1800-1877), 3rd Baronet, Welsh peer, an officer in the British Indian Army who had a "perfect knowledge" of Burmese


  1. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  2. Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's Retrieved January 6th 2023, retrieved from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
  3. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  5. Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's (Retrieved October 4th 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm


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