Recorded as the rare Hegg and Hegge, although these seem to be English, the diminutive Heggie and the patronymic Heggieson and Heggison, the latter three being apparently Scottish, this is a confusing surname. When English it is a derivative of the pre 7th century word "hegge" meaning a hedge or defensive wall of thorn trees erected round a village to keep cattle in and bandits out! However in Scotland and Northern England as Heggie and Heggison it is claimed to be a shortened form of the name Mackeggie or Mackaggie.
These it is claimed originate from the Gaelic M' Adhamh or M' Edhamh, meaning 'son of Adam'. Well this is possible on the basis that anything is possible with a surname! It seems that the first recording in any form was during the reign of Alexander IInd of Scotland (1214 - 1249), when one Gillemur Mac Egn was a witness to a covenant between the Abbey of Scone and Adam, the son of Odo, a local landowner. The development recordings include James Heagie, a merchant burgess of Stirling in 1617, whilst Jane Heggison married Thomas Reilly at Glasgow, on May 21st 1861. The first recorded spelling of the family name may be that of Donald Hegy. This was dated 1546, in the register of the Privy Seal of Scotland, during the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots, 1542 - 1587. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was sometimes known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.
The origin, the coat of arms or the different heraldic shields, and the bibliography in which the surname hegge is mentioned are part of this exciting investigation. We can try to trace the genealogy of the surname hegge, and in addition to the original locations of hegge, we can find out where people with the surname hegge can currently be found.
The list of countries with a higher presence of people with the surname hegge provides us with a perspective on the history of the surname, beyond its origins, focusing on its migrations. The mobility of people carrying the surname hegge has led to its presence in different countries, as you can verify.
For those like you, who are interested in the history hidden behind the surname hegge, it is essential to find all kinds of information, both direct and tangential, that helps to construct a solid narrative of how the birth and expansion of hegge developed. The history, heraldry, coats of arms, and possible nobility of the surname hegge are scattered in documents across various regions and historical periods, so it is necessary to reconstruct a complex puzzle to approach the facts from a realistic perspective.
We keep our website updated through our own research and also thanks to contributions from people like you, after verification; so if you have information about hegge and send it to us, we will update it on this website. Please note that if you are in a position to provide more data about the surname hegge or any other surname and its origin, we would appreciate your collaboration with us by sending us information about the origin of hegge.
Sadly, not all the contributions of those who bore the surname hegge were recorded by the chroniclers of the time. A surname like hegge can connect a person to an illustrious lineage and a distinguished coat of arms. However, it must be kept in mind that it is individual people who, through their lives and actions, bring fame and recognition to their surnames. It is our desire to highlight in this section those individuals with the surname hegge who, for various reasons, have left their mark on the course of history.
The origin, history, coat of arms or different coats of arms, and the heraldry of hegge are recorded in a wide variety of sources and documents that are essential to know for better compilation. We consider it highly advisable to refer to the following sources if you wish to conduct research on the surname hegge, as well as many other surnames.
These sources are essential for initiating the understanding of hegge, and at the same time, of surnames in general.