Lee (English surname)
Template:Short description Template:For Template:Use dmy dates
Lee is a common surname in the English-speaking countries.
In Canada, "Lee" was the 7th-most-common surname outside of Quebec.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the United States during the 2000 census, "Lee" was the 22nd-most-common surname.<ref name="US">United States Census Bureau. "Genealogy Data: Frequently Occurring Surnames from Census 2000 Template:Webarchive". 27 Sept 2011. Accessed 29 Mar 2012.</ref>
Origins
England
There are several distinct origins of the Lee surname. The most common is derived from Old English lēah, meaning a meadow or forest clearing.<ref>Edward Neafsey The Surnames of Ireland: Origins and Numbers of Selected Irish .2002 .. – Page 132 "In the English language, Lee, Lea, Leigh and Ley are names derived from nominative or dative cases of the Anglo-Saxon 'leah'. Originally it meant a wood, glade or clearing ...</ref><ref>Michael C. O'Laughlin -The Families of County Limerick, Ireland: Over One Thousand ...1997 – Page 93 "Lee is a common name in England, and some of the names are originally from there; Lee is also an old Irish family name, stemming from families of O'Lee and MacLee, This helps to account for the widespread location of the name in Ireland." The name Lee is a very common English, British, and American surname.</ref>
This developed variously into the surnames Lee, Lea, and Leigh.Template:Citation needed
Ireland
The name in Ireland has several diverse origins, resulting in widely dispersed clusters of the name in South Western, Western (Galway) and North Eastern Counties.<ref>Michael C. O'Laughlin The Book of Irish Families: Great & Small – 2002 reprinted from Michael C. O'Laughlin Families of County Galway, Ireland – 1998 – Page 125 "Lea, Maclee, Macalea, Melee, O'lee, Families of the surname of "Lee" in Ireland may stem from any one of several origins. Lee is an old Irish family name stemming from the families of O'Lee and MacLee. Lee is also a name of English origins ..."</ref> One recognized root was the anglicization of the Irish surname "Ó Laoidigh" which resulted in several variants, such as Lee, Lea, and Maclee.<ref name="IGF">"Irish Genealogical Foundation: Book of Irish Families". 1997. Accessed 4 June 2013.</ref> Other Lees have English roots and still others may have derived from the Norman "Du Lea".Template:Citation needed The 1901 Irish census<ref name="INA">"1901 Census of Ireland: Surname Lee in All Counties". 27 Sept 1901. Accessed 29 May 2013.</ref> list 4912 entries primarily in Galway, Dublin, Cork, Antrim, Limerick and Down counties.
Norway
Originating from Norway as "Lie", this surname was altered when it arrived in the Americas in the late 1800s to fit the English language's pronunciation.Template:Citation needed
Places
Several places in the US have been named for the various famous people named Lee:
United States
- Lee, Massachusetts
- Lee, New Hampshire
- Lee's Summit, Missouri
- various Fort Lees
- various Leesburgs
- various Leesvilles
- Washington and Lee University
- Lee Township, Michigan
- Lee Township, Minnesota
- Lee County, Florida
See also
- Lee (given name)
- List of persons with the surname Lee
- Lea (surname) and Leigh (surname), for related English surnames
- Li (surname), for numerous East Asian surnames romanized "Li"
- Li (李), for the most common one
- Lee (Korean name), for its Korean variants
- Lý (Vietnamese name)