| Harris | |
|---|---|
| Family name | |
| Meaning | "Son of Harry" |
| Region of origin | Scotland, Wales, Ireland, England |
| Footnotes: [1] | |
Harris is a (patronymic or paternal) family name of British origins, and has many different spellings, none of which are the definitive, or 'correct', spelling. These spellings are largely regional which, when combined with the fact that most families only learned to spell in the 19th century, has led to different branches of the same families having different spellings of the name. Harris is the 24th-most common surname in the United Kingdom.[2]
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Harris means 'Son of Harry' or 'Harry's Son'. Harry is a pet form of Henry. Harry was the regular pronunciation of Henry during the Middle Ages, but is not often found in early documents as the Latin version of Henricus was used instead.[3] Henry is the Anglicised version of Henri which was introduced into Britain by the Normans in 1066. Henri means "home ruler".
Early records suggest that the surnames Harrison and Harris were used interchangeably by some families. It is likely that some modern Harrisons and Harrises are related.
In most cases the Harris surname appears to be British in origin. It was commonly adopted as a surname in south western England, the Midlands, Essex and Wales. As with other similar names it was adopted by most families in England between 1300 and 1400, and later in Wales and Scotland. Very few families used the name prior to 1300.
Some other Harris families originated in Germany, France, etc., and adopted the name Harris upon immigration to Britain or America. Jewish refugees are known to have adopted the name upon arrival in Britain. Ellis Island is renowned for having Anglicised non-English names in America c1900.
Descendants of African slaves in the United States have also adopted the name. It is likely that some used, or were given, the name of their owners. Others may have adopted it in a patronymic fashion, i.e., they were the son of someone called Harry.
DNA Surname projects exist for both Harris[4] and Harrison.[5] These projects help reveal more about the roots of different Harris and Harrison families and identify family groups.
The majority of Harrises tested so far[6] belong to R1b1 (Western European) or I1a (Scandinavian) Haplogroups. However, members have also been found who have E3 (African), J (Middle Eastern/Mediterranean) and R1a (Eastern European) Haplogroups.
R1b1 originates from all over Britain, however, I1a tends to be first found in East Anglia or the North-East of Scotland, which correspond to areas settled by Danish Vikings before the Norman conquest of 1066.
Irish Harris families probably originate from England, Wales and Scotland and arrived in Ireland during the conquest of Ireland c.1603.
Harrises also began to emigrate to Canada and America in the 17th century, to Australia and New Zealand in the 18th century and to South Africa in the 19th century. Initial numbers of emigrants were small and it was not until the last half of the 19th century that large numbers of Harrises emigrated from Britain.
In 1998 [7] statistics for different spellings of Harris were:-
The distribution of the name Harris can be found on http://www.britishsurnames.co.uk/surnames/HARRIS/maps and the distribution of Harries is shown on http://www.britishsurnames.co.uk/surnames/HARRIES/maps
In 2000 Harris ranked twenty-fourth in the United States Census, down from fifteenth in the 1990 Census.[8][9]
Very few Harrises have any association with, or the right to bear, coats of arms. Throughout the ages various Harrises have been awarded arms by the Royal College of Arms, London, but very few were hereditary (passed on to successive generations).
As is often the case in heraldry, a tradition has emerged in the design of different Harris coats of arms; one or more hedgehogs are often incorporated into the blazon. The original reason for this has been lost in time, but it is likely that it was originally due to one, or both, of the following explanations:-