The spelling of the surname indicates that the Emtages of New Zealand had their origins in Barbados where several of the branches of the Emptage family dropped the ‘p’ from their name. But who was the first Emtage to arrive in New Zealand and set up home? And when did he do so?
The Origin of the Barbados Emptage/Emtage Family
Barbados is an eastern Caribbean island. It was there that John Emptage married Elizabeth Stafford in 1764 and thus began the Emptage family in Barbados. Over the years, the ‘p’ was often omitted from the spelling and the name became Emtage.