Sey=Say=Saie=Latin Saga=Sagum-Woolen Cloak & Latin Serica
Tracking backwards for the term and name Sayer or Sayre
we find that its origins come from the Latin Saga: for Woolen cloak
or
Latin Serica:
Greek: Sericos:
meaning Silken
Its interesting to see these words all had a similar sound
One thinks
the Seri=silk
and
the Saga=wool
to be nearly interchangeable
the French were far better known for the Silk work and thus the Silk meaning and Sound: Seri
Sey was a type of thin fabric: most similar to Serge
a type of twill fabric
fabric that had ridges on both sides
two up stitches and two down stitches
worsted variety most often used in military uniforms but also in suits
there is also a silk version used in linings
and a high quality woolen woven version
The word Denim: is Serge De Nimes for example
The English pre Norman times: Saxon invasion times:
were mass Exporters of this product:having few skilled workers to turn it into anything
nearly all of it going to Calais
( a good part of Calais history involves English control or domination)
were it was then woven into products
This work took place in French Flanders and the Low Countries
So England was always in need of Sayers or Seris
workers in this trade
They had certainly been importing them since at least the 1100s if not earlier.
It really ramped up in the late 1500s with many of the Flemish and French weavers being Calvinist: leaving the Catholic faith behind and needing to leave Europe: especially France
This is essentially how we know most persons with this last name are not indigenous to England and British regions:
and how we know the vast majority of persons with a version of Sayer going into England post 1600 were rarely Catholic.
(this is important for record searching purposes both in British regions and European)
the trade of Doing the Weaving barely existed here
only the Raw material as in the Wool could be produced....
Cotton and silk could not be produced in England at all.
Thus versions of this name became attached to products as various as wool, cotton and silk: depending upon where it was produced as a raw material and developed as a finished cloth
One cannot overstate the importance of the Fabrics industry in both France, Lowlands and British territories of the day
It was one of the driving forces of all these economies:
The numbers it employed were staggering:
its really the backbone of the very first Industrial economy that took poor farm working serfs and other bottom level trades into a form of middle class life.
All things Sayer and Sire have roots in this industry from ancient times.
The surname has stuck over 1,000 years