Jaffe History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

Etymology of Jaffe

What does the name Jaffe mean?

The Irish name Jaffe has a long Gaelic heritage to its credit. The original Gaelic form of the name Jaffe is "Ó Gamhna." However, the name was also used as an Anglicized form by the septs of Ó Caibheanaigh, Mac Conghamhna, and Mac Carrghamhna.1

Early Origins of the Jaffe family

The surname Jaffe was first found in County Roscommon (Irish: Ros Comáin) located in central Ireland in the province of Connacht, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Jaffe family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Jaffe research. Another 69 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1172 and 1270 are included under the topic Early Jaffe History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Jaffe Spelling Variations

People who were accounted for by scribes and church officials often had their name recorded many different ways because pronunciation was the only guide those scribes and church officials had to go by. This resulted in the problem of one person's name being recorded under several different variations, creating the illusion of more than one person. Among the many spelling variations of the surname Jaffe that are preserved in archival documents are Gaffney, Gafney, Gaffeney, Gaffeny, Gafferny, Gaffin, Gaffnay, Gaffny, Caulfields, Keveneys and many more.

Early Notables of the Jaffe family

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

Jaffe Ranking

In the United States, the name Jaffe is the 5,666^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 2

Jaffe migration to the United States +

A great mass of Ireland's native population left the island in the 19th century, seeking relief from various forms of social, religious, and economic discrimination. This Irish exodus was primarily to North America. If the migrants survived the long ocean journey, many unfortunately would find more discrimination in the colonies of British North America and the fledgling United States of America. These newly arrived Irish were, however, wanted as a cheap source of labor for the many large agricultural and industrial projects that were essential to the development of what would become two of the wealthiest nations in the western world. Early immigration and passenger lists indicate many people bearing the Jaffe name:

Jaffe Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Mina Jaffe, who arrived in New York in 1850 3
Ruha Jaffe, who landed in New York in 1850 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Jaffe (post 1700) +

Moe Jaffe (1901-1972), American songwriter and bandleader
Nat Jaffe (1918-1945), American swing jazz pianist
Michael Muir Jaffe (b. 1945), American TV and film producer
Louis Isaac Jaffe (1888-1950), Lithuanian-American Pulitzer prize-winning journalist and former director of the American Red Cross News Service in Paris
Marielle Jaffe, American actress, singer and model known for her roles in the 2010 Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, and 2011 Scream 4
Herb Jaffe (1921-1991), American independent film producer
Jerome H. Jaffe (b. 1933), American clinical professor
Elaine Sarkin Jaffe (b. 1943), American pathologist and senior investigator at the National Cancer Institute specializing in hematopathology
Daniel Jaffe, American astronomer
David Scott Jaffe (b. 1971), American video game designer
... (Another 24 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Jaffe Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: God is my leader

Sources +

MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)