Duke (surname)

This ultimately stemmed from the Latin dux, meaning "leader," and is a derivative of ducere, "to lead."

"[3] 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.'

[4] 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.

[5] Modern day residents of Counties Longford, Westmeath and Roscommon in Ireland hold the name Duke derived from this root.

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.

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.