Nash
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Nash Genealogy
Some surnames have retained an Old English prefix. The root "ash" of Nash probably originated as a place name of an ash grove. Robert atten Nash, Robert who lived by the ash, got shortened over time to Robert Nash. The name might have started up independently in different parts of the country. Thus Nashes may not be related or connected.
Wales. In Wales, the name first appeared in Haverfordwest in the early 1300's in its latinate (fraximo meaning ash) form. By the 1500's, a Nash family owned an estate at Great Nash in Llangwm parish and were local gentry. These Nashes shared a similar coat of arms with the Nashes in Worcestershire and may possibly have been related.
England. Early history might suggest that there was a western bias to the Nash name in England. There was a place near Bristol called Naish which gave rise to Naishes and Nashes. Beau Nash was the arbiter of fashion in Bath in the early 1700's.
However, by the nineteenth century, the Nash demographics looked different. More than 40 percent of the Nashes lived in London and the southeast. There were Nashes in Buckinghamshire and Suffolk from Elizabethan times; and some may have come through eastward migration. William Nash from Worcester became Lord Mayor of London in 1772. John Nash, the architect who was primarily responsible for the look of Regency London, was from a Welsh family.
Ireland. Nashes in Ireland can be traced back to the 1590's and Bandon in Cork. The name remained widespread in Cork for centuries thereafter. In addition, a Nash/Naish family in Limerick dates back to 1630 and possibly earlier at Askeaton (the American actor J. Carroll Naish came from this line). Fewer are there today. The potato famine of the 1840's caused many to leave, to the US, Canada, and Australia.
America. There were four early Nash arrivals into America whose descendants are known; James Nash to Weymouth in 1628, Gregory Nash to Charlestown in 1630, Thomas Nash to New Haven in 1640, and a fourth Nash (possibly John Nash) to Virginia in the 1640's. Others followed. The Virginia branch produced two famous brothers, Francis Nash, a hero of the Revolutionary War, and Abner Nash, who became Governor of North Carolina.
Later descendants owned plantations in Louisiana. One colorful character was Christopher Columbus Nash, a Louisiana merchant who fought his battles for white supremacy in the Reconstruction Era. On the other side was Charles Nash, the only African American to represent Louisiana during this period. In the middle, perhaps, were the "redbones," a mixed race people in Louisiana believed to have started with Thomas Nash who had arrived from North Carolina in the 1780's. Emmanuel Nash, born in Rapides parish in 1843, lived onto 1947.
Other Nashes went west. Oscar and Emily Nash left upstate New York in 1870 for a new life in Nebraska. Fred Nash started a small candy and tobacco store in Devil's Lake, North Dakota in 1885. This business went on to be the multibillion food distribution company, Nash Finch.
The early Nash immigrants were English. They were replaced by Irish as the nineteenth century went on. Their most famous son was Pat Nash, one of the political bosses of Chicago in the 1930's (although he had a reputation for honesty). More recently, there have been Jewish immigrants who adopted the anglicized Nash name. Nash means "ours" in Yiddish.
Australia. The first fleet sailed from England in 1787 carrying marine William Nash and his common law wife Maria Haynes. They were the progenitors of an extensive Nash family in Australia. Another early settler was Andrew Nash. He had acquired the Woolpack Inn in Parramatta in 1821 and became well-known for the prowess of his racehorses. A later settler from Wiltshire was James Nash. He discovered gold along the Mary river in Queenland and helped precipitate the second Australian gold rush.
There were also Nash convicts in Australia. Some thrived; Robert Nash, transported on the Albemarle in 1791; John Nash on the Eleanor in 1831; and Michael Nash from Limerick, on the Rodney in 1851.
Select Nash Miscellany
Select Nash Names
Thomas Nash was an Elizabethan pamphleteer, poet, and satirist.
Francis Nash, the American hero killed in the Revolutionary War, left his name to Nashville, Tennessee.
John Nash was the architect who transformed the look of London in the early 1800's.
Paul Nash from London was one of the few English painters of note in the inter-war period.
Patrick Nash was one of the political bosses in Chicago in the 1930's.
Ogden Nash, from Rye New York, wrote light whimsical verse which was poplular in the 1930's and 1940's.
John Forbes Nash, the brilliant American mathematician who succumbed to schizophrenia, was portrayed by Russell Crowe in the film A Brilliant Mind.
Select Nashes Today
Some surnames have retained an Old English prefix. The root "ash" of Nash probably originated as a place name of an ash grove. Robert atten Nash, Robert who lived by the ash, got shortened over time to Robert Nash. The name might have started up independently in different parts of the country. Thus Nashes may not be related or connected.
Select Nash Resources on
The
Internet
- The Lineage of Elizabeth Nash. Nash ancestry in Wales.
- Nash/Naish Family of Limerick. Nash/Naishes in Ireland and Australia.
- Thomas Nash of New Haven.
Descendants of Thomas Nash in 1640.
- Oscar and Emily Nash. The Nash family and line in New York and Nebraska.
- Nash Redbone Forebears.
Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina - Nash to Peters.
Wales. In Wales, the name first appeared in Haverfordwest in the early 1300's in its latinate (fraximo meaning ash) form. By the 1500's, a Nash family owned an estate at Great Nash in Llangwm parish and were local gentry. These Nashes shared a similar coat of arms with the Nashes in Worcestershire and may possibly have been related.
England. Early history might suggest that there was a western bias to the Nash name in England. There was a place near Bristol called Naish which gave rise to Naishes and Nashes. Beau Nash was the arbiter of fashion in Bath in the early 1700's.
However, by the nineteenth century, the Nash demographics looked different. More than 40 percent of the Nashes lived in London and the southeast. There were Nashes in Buckinghamshire and Suffolk from Elizabethan times; and some may have come through eastward migration. William Nash from Worcester became Lord Mayor of London in 1772. John Nash, the architect who was primarily responsible for the look of Regency London, was from a Welsh family.
Ireland. Nashes in Ireland can be traced back to the 1590's and Bandon in Cork. The name remained widespread in Cork for centuries thereafter. In addition, a Nash/Naish family in Limerick dates back to 1630 and possibly earlier at Askeaton (the American actor J. Carroll Naish came from this line). Fewer are there today. The potato famine of the 1840's caused many to leave, to the US, Canada, and Australia.
America. There were four early Nash arrivals into America whose descendants are known; James Nash to Weymouth in 1628, Gregory Nash to Charlestown in 1630, Thomas Nash to New Haven in 1640, and a fourth Nash (possibly John Nash) to Virginia in the 1640's. Others followed. The Virginia branch produced two famous brothers, Francis Nash, a hero of the Revolutionary War, and Abner Nash, who became Governor of North Carolina.
Later descendants owned plantations in Louisiana. One colorful character was Christopher Columbus Nash, a Louisiana merchant who fought his battles for white supremacy in the Reconstruction Era. On the other side was Charles Nash, the only African American to represent Louisiana during this period. In the middle, perhaps, were the "redbones," a mixed race people in Louisiana believed to have started with Thomas Nash who had arrived from North Carolina in the 1780's. Emmanuel Nash, born in Rapides parish in 1843, lived onto 1947.
Other Nashes went west. Oscar and Emily Nash left upstate New York in 1870 for a new life in Nebraska. Fred Nash started a small candy and tobacco store in Devil's Lake, North Dakota in 1885. This business went on to be the multibillion food distribution company, Nash Finch.
The early Nash immigrants were English. They were replaced by Irish as the nineteenth century went on. Their most famous son was Pat Nash, one of the political bosses of Chicago in the 1930's (although he had a reputation for honesty). More recently, there have been Jewish immigrants who adopted the anglicized Nash name. Nash means "ours" in Yiddish.
Australia. The first fleet sailed from England in 1787 carrying marine William Nash and his common law wife Maria Haynes. They were the progenitors of an extensive Nash family in Australia. Another early settler was Andrew Nash. He had acquired the Woolpack Inn in Parramatta in 1821 and became well-known for the prowess of his racehorses. A later settler from Wiltshire was James Nash. He discovered gold along the Mary river in Queenland and helped precipitate the second Australian gold rush.
There were also Nash convicts in Australia. Some thrived; Robert Nash, transported on the Albemarle in 1791; John Nash on the Eleanor in 1831; and Michael Nash from Limerick, on the Rodney in 1851.
Select Nash Miscellany
If you would like to read more, click on the miscellany page for
further stories and accounts:
Select Nash Names
Thomas Nash was an Elizabethan pamphleteer, poet, and satirist.
Francis Nash, the American hero killed in the Revolutionary War, left his name to Nashville, Tennessee.
John Nash was the architect who transformed the look of London in the early 1800's.
Paul Nash from London was one of the few English painters of note in the inter-war period.
Patrick Nash was one of the political bosses in Chicago in the 1930's.
Ogden Nash, from Rye New York, wrote light whimsical verse which was poplular in the 1930's and 1940's.
John Forbes Nash, the brilliant American mathematician who succumbed to schizophrenia, was portrayed by Russell Crowe in the film A Brilliant Mind.
Select Nashes Today
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The Origin/Spread of Surnames