Where the Hayes name comes from

Hayes carries two unrelated origins, one English and one Irish. In England it began as a locational surname, built from Old English hæs, meaning brushwood, and Middle English hay, an enclosure. In Ireland it is an anglicisation of Ó hAodha, descendant of Aodh.

The oldest record of the name dates to 1197 in the Eynsham Cartulary of Oxfordshire, where it appears as Heise. Nineteen coats of arms have been assumed by or granted to individuals with this or a similar surname. The spelling Heyes survives as a variant, and Hayes has also crossed over as a given name transferred from the surname.