TERRY
Terry is a surname of English origin found throughout the British Isles, particularly in England. It is derived from the medieval given name Thierry, itself a variant of the Germanic personal name Theodoric.
The name Theodoric is a compound of the elements theud – meaning “people” or “race” – and ric – meaning “ruler” or “king.” Consequently, the surname Terry can be interpreted as “ruler of the people” or “king of the people.” In some instances it may have arisen as a locational surname, derived from a place called Terry or Terrie.
Historical records show the surname in over one hundred spellings, including Terry, Terrey, Tarry (English & Scottish), Torrie and Torry (Irish), Thierry, Thiery, Thery, Theuret, Theurer, Thireau, Thoreau (French), Theike, Tieck, Thiele, Tietze, Tilke, Tillich (German), and others. The earliest known spellings appear in the Domesday Book of 1086 and in the Pipe Rolls of 1166. Earlier examples include John Terry of Warwickshire in 1221, Thomas Thury of Somerset in 1243, and Hugo Tyry of Bedfordshire in 1250.
The surname first appears on record at the end of the twelfth century. A family named Terri came to Ireland following the Anglo-Norman invasion of 1169–1170 and has since been closely associated with the city and county of Cork. In County Waterford the name is usually found as Torrie or Torry.
It is also suggested that Terry can be a form of the Old Gaelic Mac Toirdealbhaigh, a personal name meaning “one who is like Thor,” the Norse god of thunder. In Scotland, a Johannes Terry is recorded in the register of the abbey of Arbroath in 1485. The earliest recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be Ralph Teri in a 1199 register of the freemen of the city of Leicester, dated during the reign of King Richard I, also known as “Lionheart” (1189–1199).
Typical given names associated with the Terry surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Richard
- Stephen
Female
- Elizabeth
- Emma
- Helen
- Janet
- Karen
- Lisa
- Margaret
- Nicola
- Patricia
- Sarah
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
- Derry
- Dray
- Drye
- Durey
- Tairy
- Tarey
- Tarr
- Tarrey
- Tarris
- Tarry
- Tary
- Tear
- Teary
- Teer
- Teery
- Teir
- Ter
- Tere
- Terey
- Teri
- Teris
- Terr
- Terra
- Terray
- Terre
- Terres
- Terrey
- Terri
- Terrie
- Terries
- Terrin
- Terris
- Territ
- Terro
- Terryn
- Terrys
- Tery
- Therry
- Tieri
- Tiery
- Tirey
- Tiry
- Torey
- Torr
- Torrey
- Torry
- Tory
- Tourey
- Toury
- Tray
- Treay
- Trery
- Try
- Turey
- Turr
- Turrey
- Turri
- Turrie
- Turris
- Turry
- Tury
- Turya
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Terry in...
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There are approximately 14,914 people named Terry in the UK. That makes it the 593rd most common surname in Britain. Around 229 in a million people in Britain are named Terry.
Surname type: From given name or forename
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Terry
- John Terry - Football player
- Ellen Terry - Actress (1847 to 1928)
- Nigel Terry - Actor (1945 to 2015)
- Matt Terry - Singer from Bromley
- Steve Terry - Football player
- Paul Terry - Actor
- Rob Terry - Welsh professional wrestler
- Paul Terry - Football player
- Quinlan Terry - Architect
- Peter Terry - Royal Air Force air marshals (1926 to 2017)
- Helen Terry - Singer
- Joseph Terry - Politician (1828 to 1898)
- Hazel Terry - Actress (1918 to 1974)
- Len Terry - Motorsport designer and engineer (1924 to 2014)
- Emanuel Terry - American basketball player
- Fred Terry - Actor (1863 to 1933)
- Paul Terry - Test and County cricketer
- Mabel Terry-Lewis - Actress (1872 to 1957)
- Marion Terry - Actress (1853 to 1930)
- Dennis Neilson-Terry - Actor (1895 to 1932)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.