Recorded as MacKendrick, McKendrick and Kendrick, this interesting surname has a number of possible sources depending on from which country it originated. In England it was derived from the given name "Cenric" or "Kendrich", from the Old English pre 7th Century "Cyneric", composed of the elements "cyne" meaning royal and "ric" power. The Welsh personal name "Cynwrig" was the origin of the Welsh surname, which derived from the elements "cyn" meaing a chief and "gwr", a man plus the suffix of quality "ig". In Scotland the surname originated from Machendrie or Mackendrick, which are Highland border names meaning "son of Henry", whilst in Ireland the surname is a variant of Enright, an anglicized form of the Gaelic byname "Indreachtach" meaning the attacker. The surname is first recorded in the latter half of the 13th Century (see below) whilst John Kerrych is noted in the "Calendar of Inquisitiones post mortem, for Suffolk in1297, whilst in Scotland in 1601 a John McKendrik or John M'Inrig, so much for spelling, was denounced to the council of Scotland as being a traitor! A famous namebearer was Emma Eleonora Kendrick (1788-1871), a miniature- painter and author of repute. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of John Kendrich, This was dated 1279, in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire, during the reign of King Edward 1st of England, 1272 - 1307. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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