Kee
A short surname with several possible roots, especially as a reduced form of MacKee/MacKay in Manx and Scottish usage.
The #3,932 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 34,119 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Kee is tricky because old surname books give more than one explanation. One line of evidence treats it as a shortened form of MacKee, itself linked with MacKay; another notes an old English or Scottish surname spelled Kee and related to forms such as Kay or Kane. Some writers also connect it with Irish M‘Kee, but the name may have developed differently in different families.
History
Historical surname dictionaries often describe Kee as especially Manx, and one cited authority says it is more common than related short forms like Kay, Kie, or Key on the Isle of Man. In English records it also appears as a brief surname form in several counties, so modern bearers may have mixed origins. Because the same spelling could arise from different source names, family-specific genealogy matters here.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
One 19th-century note says Kee was a distinctly Manx name and, in that setting, more common than Kay, Kie, or Key.
From the historical record
“KEE K. KaTMES. 1. The same as Camoys. 2. Scot, luiim, a low ridge, an earthwork or camp, like the Antiquari/s " kaims of Kinprunes." KAIN. The same as Kane. The town”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom