Posted by: PATRICK HARRIS
E-mail: <P.HARRIS@IRC.IE>
Date Posted: April 02, 19101 at 07:11:52
Subject: Re: Re: Surname Harris

Message:

: hello.. i am wondering if you have had any responses to where the name originated from.. i am also a Harris and i was wondering about my background as well.. only that none of my family can tell me anything about it.. if you could.. would you please send me any information that you have found.. thankyou very much
: christi

Hi Christi, I have just started researching my family tree here in Ireland and have quite a bit of info. Here's some:
The name HARRIS is commonly recognised as an English derivative of the colloquial pronunciations of the name of Henry (Herry and Harry ) . All English kings whom we now call Henry were known in their time as Harry, and the first King Harry was the first Norman king to be born on English soil. There were subsequently many King Harrys and the name of Harris therefore became very popular, originally meaning 'Henry's or Harry's man' a supporter of the king.

The origins of the name Harry/Henry go back to old Germany. The name Heimirick, which was a compound of the words haimi, meaning house, and ric, meaning ruler, became Latinised , with the coming of the Romans, to Henricus. Variations on this appear in many countries, as in the French Henri.

Spelling variations included: Harris, Harries, Harrys, Harryss, Haries, Haris, Harrisson and many more.

Harris in Ireland

The names Harris and Harrison in Ireland are usually of immigrant origin having been brought to the country by settlers who arrived from England and Scotland in the seventeenth century.Whether the Isle of Harris in the West Hebrides of Scotland was named after the Harris clan, or the other way round, I'm still trying to find out! However, the native Irish O'hEarchadha Sept (tribe) of County Mayo also anglicized their name as Harris as did the Sept O'hEarchaidh.
At school, I was given the Irish form of Harris as o'hEarcheadha, so I assumed I was decended from the Irish tribe rather than the Scottish clan. It all depends on where your ancestor's emigrated from. In any event I tend to use the Irish coat of arms rather than the British one. If your email can handle JPEG attatchments I can send you the 3 variations on the coat of arms.

Harris in the New World

Some of the first settlers of this name in the New World were: Lt. Harris who Harris settled in the Barbados in 1660; Ann Harris settled in Maryland in 1737 and others.