Dorsey History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Gaelic is at the heart of all the Irish surnames that can be found throughout the world today. The original Gaelic form of the name Dorsey is “O’Dorchaidhe,” from the word “dorcha,” which means “dark.” Alternatively, some branches of the family may be descended from Norman stock; the name is also derived from “Arcy,” the name of a place in La Manche, Normandy. In this case, the surname would refer to “one from Arcy.”

Early Origins of the Dorsey family

The surname Dorsey was first found in Galway (Irish: Gaillimh) part of the province of Connacht, located on the west coast of the Island, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Dorsey family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dorsey research. Another 338 words (24 lines of text) covering the years 1066, 1334, 1384, 1725, 1779, 1598, 1668, 1598 and 1668 are included under the topic Early Dorsey History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dorsey Spelling Variations

The recording of names in Ireland in the Middle Ages was an inconsistent endeavor at best. The many regional dialects and the predominate illiteracy would have made common surnames appear unrelated to the scribes of the period. Research into the name Dorsey revealed spelling variations, including Dorcey, Dorcy, Dorsey, Darcey, D’Arcy, O’Dorcey, MacDarcy, Darsy and many more.

Early Notables of the Dorsey family (pre 1700)

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Sir John D’Arcy, chief Governor of Irelandunder Kings Edward I, II, III (14th century); Patrick Darcy (1598-1668) a… 
Another 27 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dorsey Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dorsey Ranking

In the United States, the name Dorsey is the 604^th most popular surname with an estimated 49,740 people with that name. [1]

 Dorsey migration to the United States +

The 19th century saw a great wave of Irish migrating out of their homeland in a great measure due to the oppressive imperial policies of the English government and landowners. Many of these Irish families sailed to North America aboard overcrowded passenger ships. By far, the largest influx of Irish immigrants to North America occurred with Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s. These particular immigrants were instrumental in creation of the United States and Canada as major industrial nations because the many essential elements such as the roadways, canals, bridges, and railways required an enormous quantity of cheap labor, which these poor immigrants provided. Later generations of Irish in these countries also went on to make valuable contributions in such fields as the arts, commerce, politics, and education. Extensive research into immigration and passenger lists has revealed many early immigrants bearing the name Dorsey: