Edye History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Etymology of Edye

What does the name Edye mean?

The history of the name Edye begins with the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. It is derived from the son of Ede, as Edison, which was later shortened to Eadie. The surname Edye originally derived from the Old English word Eade which referred to abundant riches.However, another reference claims that the name was derived from the Middle English name Edwy and the Old English word Eadwig which are composed of the elements ead meaning prosperity and wig which meant war. 1 2

Early Origins of the Edye family

The surname Edye was first found in the Domesday Book of 1086 where the name is found as a surname only: Eddiva, Aediva pulchra. 3 Later Stephen Edy was recorded in the Gloucestershire in 1278. 4

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 reveled more early spelling of the name: Edde (no personal name listed) in Norfolk; Edde filius Hugh in Huntingdonshire; William filius Ede in Suffolk; Robert filius Ede in Huntingdonshire; and William Ede in Norfolk. 5

"Eade is an ancient Suffolk name. In the form of Ede it occurred in this county, as well as in Norfolk, in the reign of Edward I., and in this form it was, at the same time, numerous in the neighbouring county of Huntingdonshire. Under "Sussex" reference will be found to this name in that county. Eades is a name now found in Bedfordshire, whilst Ede is found in Cornwall. The ancient name of Eade has long been in Sussex. In 1203 John Eade bought half a messuage for twenty shillings in the parish of Steyning." 6

Early History of the Edye family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Edye research. Another 150 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1200, 1379, 1500, 1555, 1565, 1566, 1603, 1604, 1609, 1667, 1686 and 1803 are included under the topic Early Edye History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Edye Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore, spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Edye has been recorded under many different variations, including Eadie, Eades, Edey, Eadey, Eddy, Edeson, Edison and others.

Early Notables of the Edye family

Distinguished members of the family include Richard Eedes or Edes (1555-1604), Dean of Worcester, born probably in Bedfordshire in 1555 of an old family which had been long seated at Sewell in...
Another 31 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Edye Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Edye family to Ireland

Some of the Edye family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 36 words (3 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Edye migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Edye or a variant listed above:

Edye Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Robert Edye, aged 25, who arrived in America in 1635 7

Edye Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Miss Nora Edye, (b. 1887), aged 16, Cornish settler travelling aboard the ship "St Louis" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 4th September 1903 en route to New York, USA 8

Edye 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. 9

Edye Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Rawleigh Edye, aged 15, who landed in St Christopher in 1633 7

Sources +

Hanks, Patricia and Flavia Hodges, A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988. Print. (ISBN 0-19-211592-8)
Dixon, Bernard Homer, Surnames. London: John Wilson and son, 1857. Print
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
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)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
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)
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_ellis_island_1892_on.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies