In the United States, most Hoyle families living in New England and the northern midwestern states have their roots in the British Isles.  Even though “Hoyle” is clearly an English surname, the largest group of Hoyle families, however, are not descendents of British immigrants to the American colonies, but rather from settlers that came from Germany and other Prussian states.

When German immigrants first came to America in the early part of the the 18th Century, they landed at seaports located in Baltimore, Philadephia and New York.  Mostly farmers and craftsmen, they took their families and moved west and south, into the western portions of Pennsylvania and into the Carolinas and Georgia.

Many of those who settled in Pennsylvania retained their German surnames and held onto many old country ways, many becoming part of a larger community often referred to as “Pennsylvania Dutch,” the term Dutch was really a corruption of the word “Deutsch” (German).

The word “Dutch” in this case owes its origin to an archaic meaning where the word “Dutch” designated groups that are today considered German and Dutch – prior to the Thirty Years’ War, the Netherlands were part of the Holy Roman Empire and the Dutch were generally regarded as one of several German peoples. Reference: Wikipedia: Pennsylvania Dutch

Some of these early German immigrants kept the name “HEYL” or ended up using variations of that surname, such as HEIL, HEILL, HAILL, HOILE, and to a lesser extent HOYL. As far as we can tell, the name was originally pronounced as sort of a gutteral “hale” sound (try clearing your throat or vibrating your tongue while saying “hale” to get the idea).

Many early immigrant families kept the original spelling and pronunciation of their surname. However, most – especially those who settled in the southern colonies – tended to Anglicize their names. Most of these families settled on “HOYL” or “HOYLE.”  During the mid-1800s in the United States, most families that initially used the the HOYL spelling later added the “E” in line with the more common usage.

Some German immigrant families, especially those living in Pennsylvania and some northern states, changed “HEYL” to “HALE” or “HAYLE” which was more in keeping with the original pronunciation of the name.  Other families just left the spelling of their surname HEYL or HEIL, similar to what it was when their ancestors first landed in America.

There will be much more on this subject in later postings.

My name is John Alan Hoyle.  I live in Salem, Oregon – a city that I consider to be one of the most beautiful in America’s Pacific Northwest.  I am a semi-retired grandfather.  My work and my hobby is the creation of websites for small businesses and private individuals.  I’ll tell you more about myself on another page at another time.  All you need to really know – beside the fact that I love and admire my own family - is that I also have a life-long passion for the study of history and genealogy. 

Today is Sunday, June 8th, 2008.  This project actually gets off the ground about forty years late – but after years of promising my family that I would write our family story, I am actually putting pen to paper – or should I say “fingertips to keyboard” - thanks to two things. First is a technological format that simply did not exist forty, or even twenty, years ago – namely the Internet.  Second – the fact that I have reached an age where I can live in semi-retirement and actually have time to do some of the things I’ve never really had time for before.

As you read my story, you’ll discover that I love family histories – especially any that involve my ancestors and also those of interlocking families.  Some of you may also enjoy researching – or at least hearing – stories about famous (and in some cases infamous) people that shared our name.  You may find out that you are related to some historical person that may have changed the course of history.  If you have children or grandchildren, they may grow to love hearing about famous people that carried their surname or were a part of their bloodline.

I hope that all that visit, and hopefully participate, will enjoy the stories about the people and places that are apart of our past and our present.   Although genealogy and family histories will be a major part of this site, I don’t want it to become just a list of names and dates of people long gone or of strangers that you may never meet.  I want it to become a living, growing history of the families that carried the surname Hoyle (or its variations), and something that you and your family will look forward to reading from time to time.

Until someone offers a better suggestion, I am choosing the tagline, quoting William Shakespeare, “There is a history in all men’s lives.”  The men and women of our family have many stories to share, both past and present.

My hope is to present those stories and introduce those people to you on the pages of this website in a way that will educate and entertain you.  I also hope that you will help by offering stories and details about your own Hoyle family members.  I actively solicit your participation in any way that you feel you can offer it.