Cheney (surname)
Cheney is a surname is of Old French origin, introduced into England by the Normans after the Conquest of 1066. The derivation is from the Old French "chesne, chesnai", oak tree, oak grove, from the medieval Latin "casnetum", and the surname may be either locational or topographical in origin. As a locational name, Cheyne may derive from any of the places named with the Old French "chesnai", such as Quesnay in Calvados and La Manche, Le Quesnay in Seine-Inferieure, or Quesnay-Guesnon in Calvados. As a topographical name, Cheyne denoted residence near a conspicuous oak tree, or in an oak forest. In some few cases, the surname may have originated as a nickname for a man with a "heart of oak". The surname is now found widespread in Scotland, where the first known bearer of the name is William de Chesne, who witnessed a charter in 1200. The development of the name includes the following examples and may refer to:
People from England
- C. R. Cheney (1906-1987), medieval historian
- Elizabeth Cheney, Lady Say (1422–1473), English aristocrat
- Thomas Cheney (c. 1485-1558), Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports
- Eric Cheney (1924-2001), an independent British motorcycle designer and manufacturer
People from elsewhere
- Ben Cheney (1905-1971), lumber businessman
- Benjamin Pierce Cheney (1815-1895), American businessman
- Brainard Cheney (1900-1990), Georgia novelist, playwright and essayist
- Charles E. Cheney (1836-1916), Reformed Episcopal Church bishop from New York
- Chris Cheney (born 1975), guitarist and lead singer of Australian rock band The Living End
- Colin Cheney (born 1978), American poet
- David D. Cheney (1822-1904), Wisconsin State Assembly member
- David W. Cheney (1859-?), Wisconsin State Assembly member
- Dick Cheney (born 1941), 46th Vice President of the United States
- Lynne Cheney (born 1941), Dick Cheney's wife
- Liz Cheney (born 1966), Dick Cheney's daughter
- Mary Cheney (born 1969), Dick Cheney's daughter
- Dorothy Cheney (1916-2014), tennis player
- Edith C. Cheney (1888–1953), New York assemblywoman 1940–1944
- Ednah Dow Littlehale Cheney (1824-1904), Boston writer, reformer and philanthropist
- Edwin Cheney (1869-1942), commissioned the Frank Lloyd Wright Cheney House
- Ellen Cheney Johnson (1829-1899), American prison reformer
- Elliott Ward Cheney, Jr., University of Texas mathematician and professor
- Emily Cheney Neville (1919-1997), author and Newbury Medal winner
- George Edward Cheney, American educator and internationally recognized leader in the area of organizational communication
- Grahame Cheney (born 1969), Australian boxer
- Guy W. Cheney (1886–1939), New York politician
- Harriet Vaughan Cheney (1796-1889), American-Canadian novelist
- Howard Lovewell Cheney (1889-1969), American architect and engineer, who designed Washington National Airport
- Howell Cheney (1870-1957), American silk manufacturer
- Ian Cheney, American film producer
- Janice Wright-Cheney, Canadian textile artist
- John Cheney (disambiguation), several people
- Kimberly B. Cheney (born 1935), Vermont attorney general
- Kyle Cheney (born 1989), Australian rules football player
- Larry Cheney (1886-1969), American baseball player
- Lauren Cheney (born 1987), American soccer player
- Louis R. Cheney (1859-1944), Connecticut businessman and politician
- Martha Cheney (born 1953), American author
- Mary Moulton Cheney (1871–1957), artist and visual arts educator in Minneapolis
- Mary Young Cheney Greeley (1811/1814–1872), wife of Horace Greeley
- May L. Cheney (1862-1942), California educator and Appointment Secretary at University of California, Berkeley
- Moses Cheney (1793-1875), abolitionist, printer and legislator from New Hampshire
- Nelson W. Cheney (1875–1944), New York politician
- Oren B. Cheney (1816-1903), abolitionist, founder of Bates College
- Person C. Cheney (1828-1901), United States Senator, Governor of New Hampshire
- Peter Cheney, Canadian newspaper writer
- Ray Cheney, rugby union player and sportsman from Wales
- Rufus Cheney, Jr., Wisconsin State Assembly member
- Russell Cheney (1881-1945), American painter
- Ruth Cheney Streeter (1895-1990), the first director of the United States Marine Corps Women's Reserve (USMCWR)
- Seth Wells Cheney (1810-1856), American artist and pioneer of crayon work
- Sheldon Warren Cheney (1886-1980), American author and critic
- Stephen A. Cheney, U. S. Marine Corps brigadier general
- Syl Cheney-Coker (born 1945), poet, novelist and journalist from Sierra Leone
- Thomas C. Cheney (1868–1957), Vermont politician
- Tom Cheney (disambiguation), several people
- Ward Cheney (1813-1876), American pioneer manufacturer of silk fabrics
See also
This page lists people with the surname Cheney.
If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.
If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.