Duke ( surname ) - wikipedia Duke ( surname ) For other uses, see Duke ( disambiguation ). Duke Family name Meaning `` leader '' ; possibly derived from `` follower of Maedoc '' Region of origin England, Ireland Related names Dukes Footnotes : Frequency Comparisons : Duke is a surname meaning ' the leader ' or ' son of Marmaduke '. It is the 856th most common surname in the United States. Contents 1 Etymology 2 Dukes 2.1 Earliest usage 3 Family motto 4 History 5 Some noteworthy people of the Duke name 6 Some noteworthy people of the Dukes name 7 See also 8 References Etymology The first is that the surname Duke and its variant, Dukes, are both derived from the various Middle English words duc, duk, and douc, which all came from the Old French word `` duc. '' This ultimately stemmed from the Latin dux, meaning `` leader, '' and is a derivative of ducere, `` to lead. '' The surname was evidently acquired by someone who was looked upon as a leader, not denoting one of noble birth since many captains or military leaders were titled landholders who would have taken their last names from their estates. The surname Dukes translates literally as `` Duke 's son. '' Alternatively, it has been suggested by scholars that the surname is simply a shortened form of Marmaduke, which is from the Irish Maelmaedoc, meaning ' servant of Maedoc. ' St Maedoc was a Christian missionary in 7th Century Wales and Ireland. As a Plantation surname, it can be found primarily in east Ulster and has been Gaelicised as Diúc. References date back to the late Twelfth century, with Herbert le Duc, a member of the Knights Templar, using the Gallicized version of the name. From 1190 -- 1191, Roger le Duc was Sheriff of London, and three generations of his family succeeded him in this office. The Pipe rolls for Berkshire refer to Adam Duke in the year 1198, and in 1214 one Henry Dukes is recorded in the Curia Regis rolls for Warwickshire. Dukes Dukes Family name Meaning derived from Son or Descendant of Duke, meaning Leader Region of origin England Related names Duke, Dukeson Footnotes : Frequency Comparisons : Dukes is a patronymic form of the surname Duke that originated in medieval England, of Anglo - Norman origin. The meaning is derived from son or descendant of Duke, which was originally recorded le Duc, a term used to mean `` leader '' before it became associated with a specific rank of the nobility. It is an uncommon name ; the 2000 United States Census showed it to be the 1,577 th most popular surname, while the United Kingdom Census of that same year showed it to be the 1,749 th most popular. Earliest usage The earliest recorded uses of the surname include : Ralph or Radulphus Dux in 1199, Buckinghamshire, Arnold de Dukes in 1200, Cambridgeshire, Henry or Henricus Dukes in 1214, Warwickshire. Family motto The Duke family uses the motto Gradatim vincimus which translates as `` We conquer by degrees. '' The Dukes family motto is Constanter, meaning `` With constancy. '' History Records indicate nameholders came to England during and in the decades following the Norman Conquest, but its usage became more common in the reign of Richard I and especially in the time of King John. In Queen Elizabeth 's long reign the surname often appeared among the rolls of her ennobled subjects who were prominently mentioned in the annals of her time. Duke families were also found very early in Ireland. According to O'Hart's Irish Pedigrees, Vol. II, some were residing in County Westmeath in the Fifteenth century. The will of one William Duke, of Kyllenagh, Kildare, recorded 1551, is found in the records at Dublin. After this early date the family name appears with more or less variation in form, and with increasing frequency upon the pages of the Irish Public Records. Hanna, in his Scotch - Irish Families of Ulster, estimates that there were in 1890 within the province of Ulster 268 persons bearing the name Duke. Thus the Dukes were one of the ancient families of England and of Ireland. They are among the earliest recorded by Burke in his pedigrees of the nobility and of the landed gentry. The first mention made of them by this authority was the aforementioned Roger le Duc, sheriff of London. The names of Duke and Dukes have been well - established in the Americas, with one of the earliest arrivals to New England being one Captain Edward Duke in 1634. Humphrey Dukes sailed to Barbados with his wife and servants in 1630. Some noteworthy people of the Duke name Annie Duke ( born 1965 ), American poker player Basil W. Duke, Confederate general Benjamin Newton Duke, ( 1855 - 1929 ) American tobacco philanthropist Bill Duke ( born 1943 ), African - American actor and director Charles Moss Duke, Jr. ( born 1935 ), American astronaut David Duke ( born 1950 ), American politician and white - nationalist activist David Duke, ( born 1978 ), Scottish footballer Donald Duke, former governor of Nigeria Doris Duke ( 1912 -- 1993 ), American philanthropist Doris Duke, African - American soul singer Edmund Duke ( 1563 -- 1590 ), English Catholic martyr Geoff Duke, English champion road racer George Duke ( 1946 -- 2013 ), African - American musician George Duke ( footballer ) ( 1920 -- 1988 ), English footballer Henry Duke, 1st Baron Merrivale, Judge and Chief Secretary for Ireland 1916 - 18 James A. Duke ( born 1929 ), American botanist James Buchanan Duke ( 1856 -- 1925 ), American entrepreneur and philanthropist James `` Red '' Duke ( 1928 -- 2015 ), American surgeon Jas H. Duke ( 1939 -- 1992 ), Australian writer Jessamyn Duke ( born 1986 ), American mixed martial artist John Woods Duke ( 1899 -- 1984 ), American composer and pianist Ken Duke ( born 1969 ), American golfer Lynne Duke ( 1956 -- 2013 ), American journalist and writer Matt Duke, English footballer Mike Duke, American business executive Norm Duke, American bowler Patty Duke ( 1946 - 2016 ), American actor P.J. Duke, ( 1925 -- 1950 ) former Cavan Gaelic Footballer Raoul Duke, alter - ego to Hunter S. Thompson, used as both a character and a pen name Robert Duke, songwriter pseudonym of Joe Meek Robin Duke, Canadian actress and comedian Steve Duke, American saxophonist Vernon Duke, Russian composer and songwriter Washington Duke ( 1820 -- 1905 ), American entrepreneur Wesley Duke, former American football player William Duke, Scottish lieutenant governor of Bengal Zach Duke, American baseball player Fictional characters Bo and Luke Duke, the good ol ' boys of Hazzard County Daisy Duke Edmund Duke ( StarCraft ) Fred J. Dukes, Marvel Comics supervillain Jesse Duke Tommy Dukes, an intellectual character in D.H. Lawrence 's 1928 novel Lady Chatterley 's Lover Oliver Dukes, the primary antagonist in Maurice Walsh 's 1950 novel Trouble in the Glen and 1954 film adaptation Some noteworthy people of the Dukes name Athletes Chad Dukes ( American football ), former NFL and Arena Football player Derrick Dukes, African - American wrestler Elijah Dukes, African - American baseball player Gordon Dukes ( 1888 -- 1966 ), American track and field athlete Harry Dukes ( 1912 -- 1988 ), English footballer Jamie Dukes, former professional football player and NFL Network analyst Mike Dukes ( 1936 -- 2008 ), American football player Tom Dukes, former American baseball player Walter Dukes ( 1930 -- 2001 ), African - American basketball player Artists and performers Ben Dukes, American independent Country music singer David Dukes ( 1945 -- 2000 ), American stage and TV actor Joanna Dukes, English actress Kevin Dukes, American guitarist Rob Dukes, lead singer for American metal band Exodus Carol Muske - Dukes, American author and poet Daragh Dukes, musician and producer of Irish rock band Headgear Literature Leopold Dukes ( 1810 -- 1891 ), Hungarian historian of Jewish literature Ashley Dukes ( 1885 -- 1959 ), English playwright Medicine Cuthbert Dukes ( 1890 -- 1977 ), English pathologist Politicians Alan Dukes ( born 1945 ), Irish politician Bill J. Dukes, American politician Other people Sir Paul Dukes ( 1889 -- 1967 ), English journalist and MI6 officer Chad Dukes ( radio personality ), co-host of the Big O and Dukes Show Ramsey Dukes, pseudonym of occultist Lionel Snell See also Duke ( disambiguation ) References ^ Jump up to : `` Duke Surname Meaning and Distribution ''. forebears.co.uk. Retrieved 23 January 2014 ^ Jump up to : `` Duke Name Meaning & Duke Family History at Ancestry.com ''. Retrieved 2013 - 06 - 02. Jump up ^ `` Duke Family Crest and History ''. Retrieved 2013 - 06 - 02. Jump up ^ `` Surname Database : Duke Last Name Origin ''. Retrieved 2013 - 06 - 02. Jump up ^ `` Dukes Surname Meaning and Distribution ''. forebears.co.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2014 ^ Jump up to : http://www.martinstown.co.uk/WEBSITE/DUKE/frames.htm Jump up ^ namenum.com Jump up ^ http://www.martinstown.co.uk/WEBSITE/DUKE/history3.htm Jump up ^ sourced from the Curia Regis Rolls of Warwickshire Jump up ^ http://www.heraldryclipart.com/d.html This page lists people with the surname Duke. If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person 's given name ( s ) to the link. Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Duke_(surname)&oldid=799400835 '' Categories : Surnames Surnames of English origin English - language surnames Patronymic surnames Hidden categories : All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from February 2017 Pages using infobox family name with unknown parameters All articles lacking reliable references Articles lacking reliable references from March 2017 All set index articles Talk Contents About Wikipedia Bân - lâm - gú Slovenščina Edit links This page was last edited on 7 September 2017, at 14 : 19. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: where does the last name dukes come from
Answer: Latin