The ancestors of the Cockley surname lived among the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. The name comes from when they lived in the village of Cochagh. The place-name was originally derived from the Old English word cocc, which literally means someone who lived by a hill or haycock, a mound of fresh cut hay left to dry in the meadow.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cockley research. Another 37 words (3 lines of text) covering the year 1327 is included under the topic Early Cockley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Cockley include Cochey, Cockey, Cocheye, Cocagh and others.
Early Notables of the Cockley family (pre 1700)
More information is included under the topic Early Cockley Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:
Cockley Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
Philip Cockley, who landed in Maryland in 1664 
Cockley Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
Hannes Cockley, aged 39, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1743 
Cockley Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
A L Cockley, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1851 
^ Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)