An excerpt from www.HouseOfNames.com archives copyright © 2000 - 2014
Where did the Scottish Gaddy family come from? What is the Scottish Gaddy family crest and coat of arms? When did the Gaddy family first arrive in the United States? Where did the various branches of the family go? What is the Gaddy family history?Gaddy is an ancient Scottish name that was first used by the Strathclyde-Briton people of the Scottish/English Borderlands. It is a name for someone who lived in Edinburghshire, where the family was found since the early Middle Ages. Gaddy is an ancient Scottish name that evolved from the Goldie, which derives from the Old English personal name Gold.
Prior to the first dictionaries, scribes spelled words according to sound. This, and the fact that Scottish names were repeatedly translated from Gaelic to English and back, contributed to the enormous number of spelling variations in Scottish names. Gaddy has been spelled Goudie, Gouday, Goudey, Goudy, Gowdy, Gowdie, Gadie, Goodie, Gady and many more.
First found in Edinburghshire, a former county, now part of the Midlothian council area where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gaddy research. Another 251 words(18 lines of text) covering the years 1643, 1567, 1783, 1847, 1576 and 1689 are included under the topic Early Gaddy History in all our PDF Extended History products.
Another 51 words(4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gaddy Notables in all our PDF Extended History products.
Some of the Gaddy family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. Another 53 words(4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products.
In such difficult times, the difficulties of raising the money to cross the Atlantic to North America did not seem so large compared to the problems of keeping a family together in Scotland. It was a journey well worth the cost, since it was rewarded with land and freedom the Scots could not find at home. The American War of Independence solidified that freedom, and many of those settlers went on to play important parts in the forging of a great nation. Among them: Thomas Gowdy, who was on record at Long Cane in Abbeyville, South Carolina in 1756; James Gaddy, who came to Canada in 1791; Alexander Goudey who settled in New England in 1792.
The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.
Motto Translation: Honesty.
The Gaddy Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Gaddy Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname.
This page was last modified on 28 October 2014 at 20:45.
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