Blakey
An English surname most likely built from the name Blake with a diminutive or descriptive ending, originally suggesting someone associated with a dark or swarthy complexion.
The #8,655 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 81,334 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Blakey is generally taken as an English surname formed from Blake, a nickname from Old English blæc or Middle English blake, meaning “black” or “dark.” The ending -ey may reflect a local or diminutive formation, or simply an old surname shape that developed alongside other Blake-based forms. In short, the name most likely began as a descriptive label for someone with dark coloring or a dark-haired complexion.
History
19th-century surname writers treated Blakey as a related form of Blake rather than a wholly separate creation. The name appears in English records especially in the north, and one late-19th-century surname survey noted it in Yorkshire, West Riding. Modern bearers are found in English-speaking countries, including the United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A late-19th-century surname atlas placed Blakey in Yorkshire, West Riding, showing it as a distinctly regional English name.
From the historical record
“SIMPLE FORMS. Blake. Blick. Eng. Blick, Bleak, Bleach, Blake, Blakey, Blacow, paie, BlIGH. French BlECH. Beautiful? COMPOUNDS.”
— The Teutonic Name-System applied to the family names of France, England and Germany