Family name origins & meanings
- German : Americanized form of Keis, which is probably of Slavic origin, or from Keiss, from a pet form of a Germanic personal name composed with gīs(il), as in Giesbrecht.
- This family is believed to have been founded by a certain Peter Kice, a Hessian mercenary fighting for the British during the Revolutionary War. Eventually, he deserted and settled in Wharton, NJ.