New Member IRELAND surname Help!

Don't forget "Web-roots" also, as they are an international web site for genealogy world wide.  

 I lost my last posting in the middle of it for some reason....anyway, the Davis have an on-line web site, you have to register and become an part of it and they charge an fee for it also. I would guess because it's so huge an site. The Stone family may be "Strawn" and German also...it's one of their varriants.Smith are likewise an huge name, they were an Lawson maternal lineage in England.  (I have to say here, that the Sprauges were friends of my sister and the Fitgeralds, an banker, was an next door neighbor for many years, Baker married the White family..my dad's surname, Webb are part of the Austin family line, I dont' if what I posted before went through or not right now. I get knocke off line now an then and when I type it goes on double line spacing which I have to constantly correct also. Sorry.

Hi Beth, just read your posts. cant realy help but you give a couple of clues that can piont you in the right direction. firstly the name john de Ireland, there are many ways that surnames were formed or changed, some took them from their fathers others from where they came from etc., the 'de' usualy means 'of' or 'from' so john from Ireland  could mean that he has come from Ireland. many irish settled in the North West of England in the counties of Lancashire and Cheshire, through the port of Liverpool. A second clue was in the name fitz-gerald, and heres were it gets interesting.I'll keep it short,lol,

Otho Gherardini, a wealthy landowner from Florence, Italy who'es family can be traced back to Troy moved to Normandy, France. he was one of the French Nobleman (Normans) that supplied armies to assist William the Conquerer to invade Briton in 1066 (Battle of Hastings). As a reward William gave these Norman lords land in England and many settled here. Otho was given the land on which Windsor Castle stands and his offspring held cusody of the Castle for centries. He changed his name to Gerald and Fitz-Gerald (Fitz being Norman for 'son of'). Gerrard, Garard, Gerrald Jerret are all the same name, depending on who recorded it. They were all Catholics so they spoke French and Latin. Many of Fitz-geralds off-spiring were given high posts including chancelor of all Ireland.

The Gerrards of Kingsley and Brynn in the west of England (Lancashire) were prominent in history and helped to shape parliment and the Maryland state in America.

Other intresting facts are that the Gherardini's founded the 'House of Hanover' from which Queen Elizabeth ll is decended. The portrait by Leonardo de Vinci's MONA LISA is Lisa Gherardini.  My surname is Gerrard and my ancestors come from the same area in Lancashire, as does Steven Gerrard the Liverpool and England footballer. Its a bit of a long shot but the clues may set you on the right track. Hope you are successful. mike

 Micheal, are you aware of the Matrix Castle in Ireland, just outside Dublin, my Irish War-bride co-worker brought it's information to me on an visit from back "home" and it has some distinction to it note worthy, first of all it was one on the casles that Queen Elizabeth conviscated and gave to her her cohorts, but it was also where Sir Walter Raleigh introduced the potato tuber to Ireland, and where "Gerald the Poet" lived, and where the Wesely brothers stopped enroute to America when they formed the "Methodist" church here, and they ussually landed in either North Carolina or Maryland-New York areas. Now she also brought me back information on the"white" family of my dad's and supposedly that their tie with the Stevens family in England is from whom Windsor Castle lands were bought from..her documentation came from an history "tour" book she picked up while in Ireland. Elizabeth (Stevens) White would eventually marry in  Philadelphia, Pennsyvanai into the Miles family also...and they are an maternal line of the Lawson. I have an grandfather back named Stephen White. I've been watching the name of Ireland for an long time now over here, but not researching but  only in reference to whom they were traveling with. Gerrard conty, Kentucky is where my hubby's family lived around the 1800's. This family is tied into an Hailey family that might be my mother's step-family froman dsecodn marriage through her father's side...her first name was keturah, after the state of Kentucky also. Hope this is of some help..the Davis, the Smith, the Bakers are all inter-related also to either my hubby or myself through my mother's family. Our "Riley" family are definately Irish.    

Hi shirley. No I wasnt aware of matrix castle, I shall do some research on it. a lot of irish people that emigrated to the States and beyond dont realise that their ancesters could go back via Ireland to England or even elslewhere in Europe. If anyone out there interested in their geneoligy, find themselves up against a 'brickwall' before the 18th century, try aproaching from a different angle. look at the name you are researching, it could give you a clue. If it looks or sounds English study early English History, there are loads of sites on the webb, you dont have to go too deep and if you come across an interesting paragraph, cut and paste it to your clipboard.Can i suguest you start about 1066 with the battle of Hastings.It was just after this that records began to be kept in England and many names were first recorded. Any name sounding simular could be the same name although spelt differently. Dont forget the Normans noblemen that invaded with William the Conqueror and settled in england, Wales and France on land given to them for assisting the invasion, spoke also French and Latin, they were usually catholic, then depending on the King or Queen of the period they lived undercover to escape imprisonment or worse. I warn you it does get addictive lol.

Interestingly the other day I stumbled on the name of a catholic Martrye who was hung at Lancaster castle. I thought to myself 'this was around the time of my ancesters and near to the same location' so i dug further to see if he knew my family. it turned out that his mothers surname was 'Gerard' before she married his father lol    Good luck, Mike