Surname Cloyes - Meaning and Origin
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Cloyes: What does the surname Cloyes mean?
Cloyes is a surname of French origin. It is derived from the town of Cloyes-sur-le-Loir in north-central France. The name itself could possibly have Celtic roots, referring to a hilly area. It was first used as a last name by families who lived in this town in the medieval period. As people began to migrate, they often took their town’s name as their surname, this helped to identify individuals who moved to different areas. Thus, the surname Cloyes is generally thought to be a topographic or habitational surname, which are types of hereditary surnames. A habitational name refers to place-names which may have been derived from both man-made and natural geographical features. Over time and with further migration, especially during the great wave of migration to the new world countries, the name has had different variations in spellings.
Order DNA origin analysisCloyes: Where does the name Cloyes come from?
The surname Cloyes is of French origin, specifically developed from the northern region of France. The name is believed to be geographical or locational, derived from the town of Cloyes-sur-Marne in the Marne department of northeastern France. The town's name originates from the French term "cloi," meaning enclosed. Consequently, a person would have been named Cloyes if they resided in or near this town during the Middle Ages, when surnames were first becoming commonplace.
As emigration patterns shifted over centuries, French names have spread across the globe. Today, Cloyes can be encountered in many places worldwide, albeit infrequently. There is a higher prevalence of the surname in the United States, partly due to historical French colonial and immigration activities. Despite this, Cloyes is not a common last name, so its presence is not concentrated heavily in any specific region. It is worth noting that the spelling of the surname may vary in different regions due to cultural adaptations and language differences.
Variations of the surname Cloyes
The surname Cloyes primarily holds its roots from French origin, specifically deriving from the place named "Cloyes" in Eure-et-Loire, France. This makes it a classic example of a locational surname. As with many surnames translated from French to English, and then spread to different regions, the spelling underwent several changes over centuries.
Common alternative spellings include Cloy, Cloys, and Clois. Other variants may include Mcloy, Mccloy, Maccloy, and Macloy. With French backgrounds, it could also be spelled with classic French suffixes, such as Cloyeux, Cloyeau, or Cloison. Other spellings could comprise the plural "s" such as Cloyess, Cloyses or Cloises. These variants tend to embody different geographical or dialectal influences.
Regarding surnames of the same origin, the name Clé, a surname originating from "Clé" in France, shares a similar geographic origin.
However, it's important to note that many factors can influence surname variations including illiteracy, language translation, regional dialects, and even clerical errors. These factors often resulted in a wide assortment of spellings of the original surname.
Famous people with the name Cloyes
- Carl Cloyes: professional long drive golfer.
- Steve Cloyes: musician, member of The Plimsouls.
- Alice Cloyes: American professional softball player and Olympic gold medalist.
- John Cloyes: Chief Scribe of the Creek Nation, and also served five terms as Principal Chief in the 19th century.
- Rick Cloyes: former basketball player.
- Lillie Cloyes: an American private school teacher who also taught Native American children in the 19th century.
- Nell Cloyes: an American composition and piano teacher, prominent in the music clubs of Montgomery, Alabama in the mid-twentieth century.
- Sibyl Cloyes: the first American woman admitted to practice law in the United States under the aegis of the state of Michigan in 1887.
- Jennie Cloyes: a noted photographer of the nineteenth century, who documented the lives of the fishing communities of Gloucester and Essex, Massachusetts.
- David Cloyes: sculptor, painter, and illustrator known for his whimsical figures of animals and other creatures.