Rivers

Rivers
This famous aristocratic surname appears to be the archetypal English name, but is in fact French! It derives from the village of La Riviere in Calvados, Normandy, the original nameholders being companions of William, Duke of Normandy, in his 1066 conquest of England. The name does actually mean 'river', and its use after the conquest was such as to subordinate the former 'broc' and 'ea', the Olde English words for rivers and streams. In the early days the surname was always preceded by the preposition 'de', although this very French appearance generally went out of use in the 15th century. There are no less than nine coats of arms granted to the family, the earliest being to Sir John de Rivers of Ongar, Essex, who was recorded as being present at the Battle of Falkirk in 1298, and who was knighted at the siege of Calais in 1299. His blazon was the unusual charge of masculy, gold and red, in the pattern of three, two and one. Through the Middle Ages there was hardly a time when a 'Rivers' did not hold high office in England. Amongst the many examples being another Sir John Rivers, Lord Mayor of London in 1589, in the reign of Elizabeth 1st. Early examples of the surname recordings include Walter de la Riviere, in the rolls of Rievaux Abbey, Yorkshire in 1150, and John de Ryvaris of Essex in 1286. One of the earliest settlers in the New World was a John Rivers who owned land in the 'Sommer Islands' in 1684. This was the early name for Bermuda. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Gozelinus de Lariuera, which was dated 1084, the Geld Rolls of Warwickshire, during the reign of King William 1st, known as 'The Conqueror', 1066 - 1087. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

Surnames reference. 2013.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Rivers — Basisdaten Hauptstadt: Port Harcourt gegründet: 27. Mai 19 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • RIVERS (W. H.) — RIVERS WILLIAM HALSE (1864 1922) Après des études de médecine, Rivers s’oriente vers la psychologie expérimentale, discipline dans laquelle ses travaux font bientôt autorité. Nommé en 1897 directeur du premier laboratoire de psychologie… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Rivers — ou en franç. Rivières état du sud du Nigeria; 21 850 km²; 3 984 000 hab.; cap. Port Harcourt …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Rivers — [riv′ərz] Larry (born Yitzroch Loiza Grossberg) 1923 ; U.S. painter …   English World dictionary

  • Rivers — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Rivers est, en anglais, le pluriel du mot rivière. Rivers peut désigner : Patronyme David Rivers (né en 1965), joueur américain de basket ball. Dick… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Rivers — /riv euhrz/, n. 1. Larry (Yitzroch Loiza Grossberg), born 1923, U.S. painter. 2. William Halse /hawls/, 1865 1922, English physiologist and anthropologist. * * * ▪ state, Nigeria       state, southern Nigeria, comprising the Niger River delta on… …   Universalium

  • Rivers — I Rivers   [ rɪvəz], Bundesstaat von Nigeria. II Rivers   [ rɪvəz],    1) Larry, amerikanischer Maler, * New York 17. 8. 1923; war zunächst Jazzmusiker und studierte 1947/48 Malerei in New York bei H. Hofmann …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Rivers, W H R — ▪ British anthropologist born March 12, 1864, Luton, near Chatham, Kent, Eng. died June 4, 1922, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire       English medical psychologist and anthropologist known principally for The Todas (1906), a model of precise… …   Universalium

  • rivers — Some streams (wadis) which are dry in summer are incorrectly called rivers (Deut. 2:37). They are violent in winter and their torrents are used as an illustration of the power of enemies (Ps. 124:4). Genuine rivers are mentioned in the Bible: the …   Dictionary of the Bible

  • Rivers — Original name in latin Rivers Name in other language YYI State code CA Continent/City America/Winnipeg longitude 50.03081 latitude 100.24029 altitude 478 Population 1165 Date 2008 04 11 …   Cities with a population over 1000 database

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”