| ![Show Contents]() Celia History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
England
Etymology of CeliaWhat does the name Celia mean? The name Celia is from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of the Britain and comes from happy person who had good fortune. It is derive from the Old English word saelig, meaning happy and blessed. 1 Early listings of the name was typically seen a "sely" and "seli" and was referenced at least twice in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales: "For sely is that deth, soth for to seyne, That, ofte y- cleped, com'th and endeth peyne"; and "That Nicholas shal shapen hym a wyle This sely, jalous housbonde to bigyle." Early Origins of the Celia familyThe surname Celia was first found in Somerset where the first listings of name were found as a personal name: Sely atte Bergh; Sely Percy; and Sely Scury. All were found in Kirby's Quest temp. 1 Edward III (during the first year's reign of King Edward III. 2 The one exception of the aforementioned was William Sely. Early feudal rolls provided the king of the time a method of cataloguing holdings for taxation, but today they provide a glimpse into the wide surname spellings in use through the ages. Richard Seli was listed in Lincolnshire c. 1200; Roger le Seli was found in the Pipe Rolls of 1205 in Herefordshire; Roger Cely in Shropshire in 1255; Richard Sely and John Celi in the Subsidy Rolls for Worcestershire in 1275; and Thomas Zely was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Worcestershire in 1327. Entries were also found as a woman’s name: Sela was listed in the Assize Rolls for Lincolnshire in 1219; Sely filia Nicholai in the Assize Rols for Worcestershire in 1221; and Sely Percy in the Subsidy Rolls for Somerset in 1327. 3 The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 has some interesting entries too: William Sely in Oxfordshire; Egidius Sely in Norfolk; and John Sely in Gloucestershire. 4 Early History of the Celia familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Celia research. Another 131 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1602, 1618, 1621, 1623, 1626, 1630, 1668 and 1760 are included under the topic Early Celia History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Celia Spelling VariationsThe first dictionaries that appeared in the last few hundred years did much to standardize the English language. Before that time, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. The language was changing, incorporating pieces of other languages, and the spelling of names changed with it. Celia has been spelled many different ways, including Cely, Ceeley, Celey, Ceely, Ceiley, Seely, Seeley and others. Early Notables of the Celia familyNotable amongst the family at this time was Sir Benet Celey of Plymouth; and Robert Seeley, also Seely, Seelye, or Ciely, (1602-1668) born in Bluntisham-cum-Earith, Huntingdonshire, he was an early Puritan settler who sailed with John Winthrop to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630 helping establish Watertown, Wethersfield, and New Haven. He was born in Bluntisham-cum-Earith...
Another 55 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Celia Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
| Celia migration to the United States | + |
Thousands of English families in this era began to emigrate the New World in search of land and freedom from religious and political persecution. Although the passage was expensive and the ships were dark, crowded, and unsafe, those who made the voyage safely were rewarded with opportunities unavailable to them in their homeland. Research into passenger and immigration lists has revealed some of the very first Celias to arrive in North America:
Celia Settlers in United States in the 19th Century- Juan De Celia, who landed in Puerto Rico in 1829 5
- Felipe De Celia, aged 25, who landed in New Orleans, La in 1829 5
| Contemporary Notables of the name Celia (post 1700) | + |
- Zoe Celia Ducós Gallegos (1928-2002), Argentine film, stage, and television actress
- Olivia Celia McKoy (b. 1973), retired female javelin thrower from Jamaica
- Celia Feinman Adler (1889-1979), American actress, known as the "First Lady of the Yiddish Theatre"
- Celia Margaret Britton FBA (1946-2024), British scholar of French Caribbean literature and thought
- Celia W. Dugger (b. 1958), American journalist and science editor
- Celia Jiménez Caballero (b. 1976), Spanish chef
- Celia Weston, American character actress, she received an Independent Spirit Award nomination for her performance in Dead Man Walking (1995)
- Celia Kay Burkholder (b. 1942), known as Celia Kaye, American actress and Golden Globe winner
- Celia Kaye (b. 1942), born Celia Kay Burkholder, American actress and Golden Globe winner
- Celia Jane Innes C.V.O., L.V.O. (b. 1948), British Lady in Waiting to The Princess Royal, was appointed Commander of the Royal Victorian Order on 29th December 2018 6
- Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
- Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
- Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
- 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)
- "Birthday and New Year Honours Lists (1940 to 2019)." Issue 62507, 28 December 2018 | London Gazette, The Gazette, Dec. 2018, www.thegazette.co.uk/honours-lists
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