Wykes is a very old

surname In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

from an English origin. The current distribution of Wykes' tends to be in the UK and the former British Colonies. There are Wykes' living in the United Kingdom, Australia, United States, Canada, New Zealand and even India .

Variants

Over centuries the surname has changed and now has variants. Some of the present-day variants include Wecks, Week, Weeks, Whicks, Whikes, Whykes, Wick, Wickes, Wicks, Wix, Wycha and Wyke. It is likely that one source of the name originates in Saxon times. A wyke was the Saxon term for a dairying hamlet, or small village.

History

Wykes is not a common

, but it is definitely an old one. That it is an English name seems certain, although some of the alternate spellings have more recent

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

n or continental Germanic origins. Wykes was one of the original 5 or 6 pre-Norman surnames in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The earliest written record of the name is in the Anglo Saxon Chronicle of AD 1002 which mentions one Sygmund Wycha, "freeholder and huntsman". Elizabeth Wykes was the daughter of Henry Wykes of Putney, Surrey, a shearman who later became a gentleman usher to Henry VII.

Notable Wykes

* Adrian Wykes (born 1958), English cricketer *

Alissa Wykes Alissa Wykes (born ) is a former American football running back who played for the Philadelphia Liberty Belles of the National Women's Football Association. When she was playing, she was 5'6" tall, weighed 209 pounds, and was nicknamed "A-Train" by ...

(born 1967/8),American football player * David Wykes (1867–1895), English footballer *

Dylan Wykes Dylan Wykes (born June 6, 1983) is a Canadian long-distance runner. He represented Canada in the marathon at the 2009 IAAF World Championships in Athletics in Berlin, Germany as well as the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, England. In April 2012, ...

(born 1983), Canadian long-distance runner * Geoffrey Wykes (1890–1926), English cricketer * James Wykes (1913–1992), English cricketer and schoolmaster * Nicholas Wykes (), English landowner and MP * Norman Wykes (1906–1991), English cricketer * Paul Wykes (born 1971), English snooker player *

Robert Wykes Robert A. Wykes (May 19, 1926 in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania; - June 29, 2021 in St. Louis, Missouri) was an American composer of contemporary classical music and flautist. He began studying the flute as a child, then served in World War II. He then ...

(1926–2021), American composer and flautist * Sam Wykes (born 1988), Australian rugby union footballer *

Sarah Wykes Sarah Wykes is a British human rights activist. Wykes was born in York in July 1965 and had her early upbringing there. She has a PhD in Hispanic Studies from London University. She worked with Amnesty International for Corporate accountability ...

(born 1965), British human rights activist * Ted Wykes (1921–2008), Australian cricket umpire * Thomas Wykes (chronicler) (1222–1291/93), English chronicler * Thomas Wykes (MP for Cambridgeshire) (died c.1430), English MP for Cambridgeshire * Thomas Wykes (MP for Leominster) ({{floruit, 1554), English MP for Leominster *Dame

Til Wykes Professor Order of the British Empire, Dame Til Wykes, Lady Davies (born March 1953) is an English academic, author and editor. Born as Hilary Margaret Wykes, she is Professor of Clinical Psychology and Rehabilitation and Head of the School of ...

(born 1953), English academic, author and editor * Walter Wykes (born 1969), American playwright

References

Surname Genealogy Search

External links

The World WYKES Web
Surnames