This surname is derived from a geographical locality. 'at the haw,' i.e. the hedged field or enclosure; AS. haga, an enclosure; Du. haag, a hedge; whence Gravenhage, i.e. the count's garden. the place called by us 'the Hague' (v. Skeat, haw). In Yorkshire and Lancashire the same spelling has been adopted as one of the forms of Haig. The spread of Haigh in Yorkshire has been something extraordinary; but it had many representatives to start with.

Gilbert del Hagh', 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

Robertas del Hagh', 1379: ibid.

Ricardus del Hagh', 1379: ibid.

Robert atte Haghe, Norfolk: History of Norfolk.

Richard atte Haghe, Norfolk: ibid.

Roger atte Heygh, Somerset, 1 Edward III: Kirby's Quest.

Thomas Haghe, of the parish of Rochdale 1604: Wills at Chester.

Piers Haigh, of Lymm, 1603: ibid.

James Hague, son of James Hague, 1692: ibid. (1681-1700).

The first of the name recorded is Petrus del Hage, who witnessed the sale of two serfs, their sons and daughters, and all their progeny between 1162 and 1166 (Diplomata Scotiae, 75). From the year 1412 the family of Haig of Bemersyde invariably used the form of Haig. Originally the name was in two syllables, Ha-ge, with the g sounded hard as shown by the spelling Hag-he (c. 1185). The name is in Old English haga, an enclosure, yard, from the root bag, to surround. The word also survives in the modern haw (in hawthorn, Hawick for Hatuwick, and in hayward, the hedgewarden). The old prophecy attributed to Thomas the Rhymer referring to the leading family of the name:

"Tide, tide, whate'er betide,

There'll aye be Haigs in Bemersyde."

proved false in 1867 when the Haigs of Bemersyde died out. It has been said that the true reading of the prophecy is "Betide, betide, whate'er betide There'll aye be a hag on Bemersyde," alluding to the hag or thicket which covers and clings to the cliff from Bemersyde down to the Tweed. For a history of the family and name see The Haigs of Bemersyde: a family history, Edinburgh, 1881. Bemersyde was purchased from its owner and presented to Field-Marshal Earl Haig in 1921 as a gift from the nation.

(English) Dweller at a Hedged En- closure or Field [Old English haga=O.N.

hagi] Robert atte Haghe.—Blomefield, Hist. Norf.

William de Hagh.—Lanc. Fines, A.D. 1337.

From Sir R. Douglas' Baronage of Scotland it appears that this family claim a Pictish, or an ancient British extraction; but as in many similar cases the name is only traceable to the XI. century, and the reign of Malcolm IV. and William the Lion, when Petrus de Haga was lord of Bemerside, in Berwickshire. Twenty generations of Haigs have held that estate, and upon the authority of a distich, attributed to Thomas the Rhymer, the family is perennial:

A township in Lancashire.

(Scotch), Hedge. (variant: van den Haag, zum Hagen, and Hay.)

The somewhat similar name of Haigh is now numerously represented in the Huddersfield district. Henry Haigh held an estate in the adjoining parish of Halifax in the 17th century (W.).