Gee
An Irish and English surname that can come from Gaelic Mac Gee or from a place-name in Cheshire, especially Gee Cross.
The #1,547 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 13,285 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname has at least two well-known origins. In Irish usage, it is often explained as a shortened form of Gaelic Mac Gee, meaning 'son of Gee,' with the Mac dropped in later anglicized forms. In England, it was also used as a local surname for people from Gee Cross in Cheshire, and the place-name tradition is strongly represented in the historical record.
History
Lower explicitly notes the Irish Mac Gee connection, while Bardsley’s Cheshire material treats Gee as a local surname from Gee Cross and says the family is deeply rooted there. The name appears in Cheshire records from the late medieval period, and both the Irish and English lines seem to have contributed to modern bearers. In the United States today, Gee is comparatively uncommon but established.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Gee Cross is a real village name, and one 19th-century source even remarked that many local Gees could be traced back there.
From the historical record
“GEE CO. Salop (-where they still reside) by Edward the Confessor. The pedigree, how- ever, is not traced beyond the time of Henry III. Sliirley's Noble and Gentle Men. GATE. From residence near either the gate of a fortified town, or of a chase, forest, or the like. Its medieval forms are Ate Gate and Atte Gate…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom