Erck, Herrick, Herricke Surname

Erck
Dutch and German: from a Germanic personal name formed with erkan ‘pure’, ‘perfect’.
English: reduced form of Herrick.

Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4

Herrick
English: from the Old Norse personal name Eiríkr, composed of the elements eir ‘mercy’, ‘peace’ + rík ‘power’. The addition in English of an inorganic H- to names beginning with a vowel is a relatively common phenomenon. It is possible that this name may have swallowed up a less common Germanic personal name with the first element heri, hari ‘army’.
Dutch: from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements heri, hari ‘army’ + ric ‘power’, or from an assimilated form of Henrick, a Dutch form of Henry.
Irish: Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó hEirc ‘descendant of Erc’, a personal name meaning ‘speckled’, ‘dark red’, or ‘salmon’. There was a saint of this name. The surname is born by families in Munster and Ulster, where it has usually been changed to Harkin.

Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4

Herrick
Origin Displayed: English
br /> Herrick is a name that dates far back into the mists of early British history to the days of the Anglo-Saxon tribes. It is derived from the Old Danish and Old Swedish name Erik and the Old Norse name Eiríkr. Many Scandinavian personal names were left in the British Isles as a legacy of the Viking raids which plagued the coastal regions of Britain from the 8th to 10th centuries, and many of these eventually became Anglo-Saxon surnames.

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, early Anglo-Saxon surnames like Herrick are characterized by many spelling variations. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages, even literate people changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Herrick include: Herrick, Herricke and others.

First found in Leicestershire where they were seated from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.

Many English families tired of political and religious strife left Britain for the new colonies in North America. Although the trip itself offered no relief - conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and many travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute - these immigrants believed the oppurtunities that awaited them were worth the risks. Once in the colonies, many of the families did indeed prosper and, in turn, made significant contributions to the culture and economies of the growing colonies. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families has revealed a number of immigrants bearing the name Herrick or a variant listed above: Jacob Herrick settled in New York in 1646; Henry Herrick settled in Salem, Mass. in 1630; Thomas Herrick settled in Virginia in 1636.