Date
Meaning & History
Habitational name from Northay in Hawkchurch Devon. The placename derives from Middle English north "north northern" and heie "fence enclosure hedge" (Old English norþ (ge)hæg). Or perhaps occasionally from a lost place called Northeye in Bexhill Sussex or from Northey Wood in Ugley Essex. The Sussex placename derives from Middle English north "north northern" and ei "island" (Old English norþ ieg) while the Essex placename has the same etymology as Northay in Hawkchurch.