Davies

Davies
Origin
Region of origin Wales
Other names
Variant(s) Davis, Davey, Davieson, Day
Footnotes: Frequency Comparison:[1]

Davies is a patronymic Welsh surname. It may be a corruption of Dyfed, itself a corruption of Dési, colonists from south-east Ireland who occupied the old tribal area of the Demetae in south-west Wales in the late third century AD, establishing a dynasty which lasted five centuries[2]. Dyfed is recorded as a surname as late as the 12th century for e.g. Gwynfard Dyfed, born in 1175. 'Dafydd' appears as a given name in the 13th Century, e.g. Dafydd ap Gruffydd (1238–1283), Prince of Wales, and Dafydd ab Edmwnd (fl. c. 1450–97), Welsh poet. The given name 'Dafydd' is generally translated into English as 'David'. Alternatively it may derive from David (a Hebrew name meaning "beloved"),[3] the name of Wales's patron saint. In Wales the name is standardly pronounced /ˈdeɪvɪs/ DAY-vis, that is, identically to Davis. This pronunciation is also used by many outside the United Kingdom, where it competes with the spelling pronunciation /ˈdeɪviːz/ DAY-veez, although the latter pronunciation is universal in the United States.

Davies is the 2nd most common surname in Wales and 8th most common in England of Welsh descendants.[1] where it is particularly widespread in the south-west, especially Cornwall. It is not common in the United States where the spelling Davis is preferred.[4]

Notable people with the surname include:

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

V

W

Z

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Davies Surname Meaning and Distribution". forebears.co.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2014
  2. ↑ 'The Celts', TGE Powell, Thames & Hudson, 1958
  3. ↑ "Surname Database: Davies Last Name Origin". surnamedb.com.
  4. ↑ "Davis Surname Meaning and Distribution". forebears.co.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2014
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