2,888 Global Cork Family Members

Cork Family History

This interesting surname is a variant of Cork itself deriving from the Celtic word "corcair" (medieval English "Cork"), a purple or red dye stuff and was originally given as a metonymic occupational name to a supplier of this dye or to a dyer of cloth with cork. The ultimate origin of the name lies in the Latin "Purpura", the name of the shellfish from which the dye was obtained. The famous Tyrian purple was made from a mixture of these shells and was very costly to produce. Because the woollen robes worn by Roman Emperors was dyed with this colour, purple became symbolic of nobility and power...