Harris – Surname Saturday

Roberts-Blackwell-Harris Line
By Don Taylor

Harris Origin

Harris is typically an English name, pluralizing of the personal name “Harry.” It is also in Ireland, where Harris can be an Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó hEarchadha. Occasionally, it can be an Americanized form of several Greek and similar-sounding Jewish surnames.[i]

Similar names and variations include: Harry, Farris, Sarris, Gabris, Parrish, Hargis, Harts, Martis, & Ferris.[ii]

Geographical

World: Over 1 Million people bear the surname Harris. About ¾ of those people live in the United States. The tiny island country in Micronesia of Nauru has the highest frequency of people with the Harris surname, with 1 in 29 people having the surname.

United States: Harris is most common in the US in Mississippi, where 1 in 200 have the surname. Nationally, about 1 in 471 people have the surname.[iii]  

My Direct Harris Ancestors[iv]

• 4^th Great-grandmother: Sarah Harris (1760-1835)
• 5^th Great-grandfather: Robert Harris (1740-1809)
• 6^th Great-grandfather: Robert Overton Harris (1696-1765)
• 7^th Great-grandfather: William Harris (1669-1730)
• 8^th Great-grandfather: Robert Harris (1635-1701)
• 9^th Great-grandfather: William Harris (1596-1656)
• 10^th Great-grandfather: William Harris (1545-1601)
• 11^th Great-grandfather: William Harris (1522-1559)
• 12^th Great-grandfather: William Harris (1502-1556)
• 13^th Great-grandfather: John Harris (1480-1520)

My Harris Ancestors in History

Revolutionary War – Sarah married David Blackwell in 1776, and their first child was born in 1779. David served in the Virginia militia during the Revolution. His father, Robert Harris, served in the Albemarle Co., Virginia militia.

Drawing of a fortified village like Jamestown.

Immigrant Ancestor – William Harris emigrated to Virginia Colony with William Claiborne in 1621. He was born about 1596 in Willingale Doe, Esses, England.

Some researchers believe my earliest known Harris ancestor to be John Harris, born in Prittlewell, Essex, England, before 1480.[v]

Locations of my Harris Ancestors

• 

  Church of St Andrew, Willingale, Essex, England

  England, Essex, Prattlewell

• England, Essex, Willingale Doe
• North Carolina Colony, Surry Co.
• Virginia Colony, Albemarle Co.
• Virginia Colony, New Kent Co.
• Tennessee, Roane Co.

My Direct Harris Descendants

I have 466 known descendants of John Harris in my tree: 159 Roberts, 13 Blackwell, 12 Hart, and 11 Harris. I have previously written about four of them.

• Grandfather: Bert Allen Roberts(1903-1949)
• 1^st Great-grandfather: Hugh Ellis Roberts(1882-1908)
• 2^nd Great-grandfather:  Asa Ellis Roberts(1835-1887)
• 3^rd Great-grandmother: Elizabeth Blackwell(1796-1867)

Sources

Ancestry – Don Taylor’s Roberts-Brown 2024 tree on Ancestry, accessed 13 Dec 2024.

Endnotes

[i] Family Search – Harris Family History.
[ii] Ancestry – Harris Family History.
[iii] Forebears – Search Surnames: Harris
[iv] Note: I have not researched and confirmed any of my Harris ancestors. All names and dates are tentative and/or speculative.
[v] WikiTree – Harris-2787