Dates History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• England

Etymology of Dates

The generations and branches of the Dates family share a name that has its roots in the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. The name Dates comes from the baptismal name Dade. This Old English personal name was originally derived from the Old English word daed, when translated means a deed or an exploit. Baptismal names began to appear as surnames relatively late in the growth of the naming tradition. This is a little surprising, given the popularity of biblical figures in the Christian countries of Europe. Nevertheless, surnames derived from baptismal names grew in popularity during the Middle Ages, and have become one of the foremost sources for surnames.

Early Origins of the Dates family

Early History of the Dates family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dates research. Another 49 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1621, 1650, 1658 and 1662 are included under the topic Early Dates History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dates Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Dates include Dade, Dadey, Dady and others.

Early Notables of the Dates family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Reverend Thomas Dade, Rector of Broadway and Bincombe in Dorset; and Major Francis Dade (1621-1662), also known as John Smith, a Virginia politician and...
Another 32 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dates Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dates Ranking

In the United States, the name Dates is the 10,643^rd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1

Migration of the Dates family

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Dates or a variant listed above: John Dade who settled in Virginia in 1676; William Dade settled in Charlestown Massachusetts in 1630; Dorothy Dadey settled in Salem Massachusetts in 1630.