Surname Mee - Meaning and Origin
all surnames with 'M'
Mee: What does the surname Mee mean?
The last name Mee is of French origin. It likely derived from the Old French word "mée" meaning "middle." The given name Mee is thought to have been a topographical name, referring to someone who lived near the middle of a river or other body of water.
In the United States, the earliest recorded use of the surname Mee is when one Edward Mee settled in Massachusetts in 1635. He was the first Mee to arrive in America. Over the ensuing centuries, several branches of the Mee family would flourish throughout the country.
The Mee name is found most commonly in the United Kingdom (especially in England) and the United States. In the UK, it is mainly found in Greater London and throughout Southern England. In the US, the name is most popular in California, Illinois, and Pennsylvania respectively.
The last name Mee has acquired a variety of spellings, including Me, Meee, Mea, Mey, Meigh, and My.
Mee is sometimes associated with other last names derived from the same source, such as Mé, Morse, and Mars.
Order DNA origin analysisMee: Where does the name Mee come from?
The last name Mee is of English origin and is found mainly in England, Wales, and Ireland today. In England, the name is especially common in Lancashire and Yorkshire. Mee is also found in significant numbers in Scotland, in the counties of Aberdeenshire, Aberdeen City, and Banffshire.
The United States also has many people with the last name Mee. Census records indicate that it is most common in New Jersey, although it can also be found in other states including Pennsylvania, California, and Michigan.
The last name Mee is also found in Australia, where it is most common in the states of New South Wales and Victoria.
Data from other countries suggests that Mee is much less common in other parts of the world. It can be found in small numbers in countries including Germany, France, Netherlands, and India.
The last name Mee may have evolved from many different origins, but most likely it originated from names derived from the Middle English personal name Mi or Mey, which began to be used in the 1200s. It may also have evolved from the Old English personal name May or Mea, which originated before the 1000s. The use of the name Mee may also have been influenced by German or French terms like Mähe or Moue, which have similar pronunciations.
Variations of the surname Mee
The surname Mee can have several variants, spellings, and surnames of the same origin. The name can be spelled as Mee, Me, Mees, Mea, Mey, May, Mie, Mî, Meigh, Mei, Meech, Mieke, Mê, Mêe, and Mêh.
In England and Wales, the name can be a variant spelling of the surname May, derived from Old French maie, meie, and maye meaning a woman in charge. It is believed to have originated as a nickname for a woman who had some authority, such as a governess or overseer. Depending on the region, the name is also derived from the Old English word maeg and meanen, meaning kinsmen.
In Northern Ireland, the highly common form of the surname is Mee, and variants of this sometimes appear as Meigh and May. These are anglicised forms of the Gaelic name Mac Aoidh. This is derived from the personal name Aodh, and means "son of Aodh".
In the Republic of Ireland, the surnames Mee and Meigh originate from the Gaelic name O’Maodhog. This is composed from the personal name Maodhog, meaning ‘noble’ or ‘proud’, and ‘O’ meaning ‘descendant of’.
It is not unusual for the Mee surname to have been adopted as a name to signify a family relationship. One example is that in northern Germany, the Mee surname was used as to denote a ‘son of the mayor’, while in Scotland, families would sometimes take the surname Mee as an indication that a member of the family had once been a minister.
Overall, the surname Mee is a fairly rare and uncommon surname. Its variants can be found in various countries, including England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Germany, and the Republic of Ireland.
Famous people with the name Mee
- Anna Mee: Academics lecturer, and a landscapist, writer and poet
- Robert Mee: American journalist and television news producer
- Chella Mee: British Relational Psychotherapist and registered nurse
- Steve Mee: Radio personality and television presenter
- Jonathan Mee: British Composer and Conductor
- Stephen Mee: Brigadier General in the United States Air Force
- Miki Mee: Jamaican Reggae and Dancehall singer
- Lance Mee: American-born Canadian ice hockey player
- Michael Mee: American actor and producer
- David Mee: English actor, known for his work on stage and television.