Davies

  • Davis
  • Davey
  • Day
  • Davison

Davies is a patronymic surname of Welsh origin. There are two main theories concerning its beginnings, neither of which has been definitively proved. The first theory states that it may be a corruption of "Dyfed", the name of a medieval Welsh kingdom located in what is now Carmarthenshire; however, the origin of the kingdom's name is itself disputed, with the traditional belief being that it was founded by the powerful Irish Déisi dynasty in the third century,[1] or otherwise that it derives from the name of the Demetae people.[2] "Dyfed" as a surname and the related first name "Dafydd" appear from the 12th century, with the latter generally translated into English as "David". The second theory contends that the surname may derive directly from the Hebrew name "David", which is also the name of Wales' patron saint.[3]

The surname is the joint-second most common in Wales (tied with Williams) and the eighth most common in England, where a large percentage of people have Welsh ancestry.[4] It is particularly widespread in southwest England, especially Cornwall, and in northwest England, large parts of which are on the border with Wales.[4] It is uncommon in the United States, where the variant "Davis" is seen more.[5] In the United Kingdom, the surname is usually pronounced the same as "Davis" (DAY-vis). This pronunciation is also used by many other English-speaking countries, though it sometimes competes with DAY-veez, which is particularly common in the United States to distinguish it from "Davis".[citation needed]

Notable people with the surname

A

  • Aaron Michael Davies (born 1984), American actor
  • Adam Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • A. Donald Davies, American Episcopal bishop
  • Adrian Davies (rugby player), Welsh rugby footballer
  • Adrienne Davies, American musician
  • Alan Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Alec Davies, Scottish cricketer
  • Alex Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Alexandra Davies (born 1977), English-born Australian actress
  • Alice Davies (1870 – after 1919), British suffragette and nurse
  • Alphonso Davies (born 2000), Ghanaian-born Canadian soccer player
  • Alfred Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Alun Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Amanda Davies (geographer), Australian geographer
  • Andrew Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Anne Davies (disambiguation), or Ann Davies, multiple people
  • Anthony Davies, Welsh snooker player
  • Antony Davies, American economist
  • Arthur Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Ashley Slanina-Davies, English actress

B

C

D

  • Dai Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Dan Davies (writer) (born 1970), British journalist
  • Dangerous Davies, fictional character from The Last Detective
  • Dave Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • David Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Deddie Davies (1938–2016), Welsh character actress
  • Denys Johnson-Davies, Canadian translator
  • Denzil Davies, British politician
  • Diana Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Dick Davies (1936–2012), American Olympic basketball player
  • Dickie Davies (1928–2023), English television presenter
  • Domenick Davies, German rugby union international
  • Donald Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Douglas Arthur Davies (1896–1992), British military officer

E

F

G

H

I

  • Ian Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Idris Davies, Welsh poet

J

  • J. Glyn Davies, Welsh poet and scholar
  • Jack Davies (disambiguation), several people
  • Jack Llewelyn Davies, second eldest of the Llewelyn Davies boys befriended by Peter Pan creator J. M. Barrie
  • Jackson Davies, Canadian actor
  • Jacob G. Davies (1795–1857), American politician
  • James Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Jeremy Davies (exorcist), English Catholic priest
  • Jeremy Davies, American actor
  • Jérémy Davies, Canadian ice hockey player
  • Jim Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Jimmy Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Jocelyn Davies, Welsh politician
  • Joe Davies (disambiguation)
  • John Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Jon Davies, American meteorologist and storm chaser
  • Jonathan Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Joseph Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Jude Davies, British academic

K

  • Karl Davies, English television actor
  • Kay Davies, English geneticist
  • Ken Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Kevin Davies, English footballer
  • Kevin Davies, British television director
  • Kieron Davies, German rugby union player
  • Kimberley Davies, Australian actress
  • Kyle Davies, American baseball player
  • Kyle Davies, American soccer player

L

M

  • M. C. Davies (1835–1913), Australian businessman
  • Mandy Rice-Davies (1944–2014), Welsh model
  • Marcus Davies (born 1991), Australian rules footballer
  • Marianne Davies, English musician
  • Marion Davies (1897–1961), American actress
  • Mark Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Marshall Davies (born 1930), American musician; pianist, professor
  • Martin Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Mary Elizabeth Davies (1925–2015), Welsh chess master
  • Matthew Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Mervyn Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Michael Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Mike Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Mims Davies (born 1975), British Conservative politician, MP for Eastleigh since 2015
  • A. Morley Davies (1869–1959), British paleontologist

N

O

P

Q

R

S

  • Sally Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Sam Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Samuel Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Sara Davies (born 1984), British businesswoman
  • Sarah Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Scott Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Sean Davies (born 1973), Zimbabwean cricketer
  • Sean Davies (footballer) (born 1985), English footballer
  • Sharron Davies (born 1962), English swimmer
  • Shona Rapira Davies, New Zealand artist
  • Siobhan Davies, English dancer
  • Simon Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • S. O. Davies (1886-1972), British politician
  • Somerset Davies (1754–1817), English politician
  • Sonja Davies, New Zealand trade unionist and politician
  • Stan Davies (1898–1972), Welsh international footballer
  • Stephen Davies (disambiguation), multiple people
  • Steven Davies, English cricketer
  • Stevie Davies, Welsh novelist
  • Stewart Davies, English football chairman
  • Stuart Davies (rugby union) (born 1965), Welsh rugby union player
  • Sue Jones-Davies, Welsh actress and singer
  • Sylvia Llewelyn Davies (1866–1910), mother of the boys who served as the inspiration for Peter Pan

T

V

W

Z

See also

Notes

References

  1. ^ 'The Celts', T. G. E. Powell, Thames & Hudson, 1958
  2. ^ Charles-Edwards, Thomas (2013). Wales and the Britons, 350–1064. OUP Oxford. p. 17. ISBN 978-0-19-821731-2.
  3. ^ "Surname Database: Davies Last Name Origin". surnamedb.com.
  4. ^ a b "Davies Surname Meaning and Distribution". forebears.co.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2014
  5. ^ "Davis Surname Meaning and Distribution". forebears.co.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2014
Surname list
This page lists people with the surname Davies.
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