Bowen Coat of Arms, Family Crest and Bowen Family History

Bowen Family History

The Bowen ancient family history was found in the irishsurnames.com archives. Bowen is baptismal name meaning 'the son of Owen', from the Welsh 'Ap Owen'. Variants of the name include Bowan, Owen and Bohane. This name is of Welsh Descent spreading to England, Ireland and Scotland in early times, and is found in many mediaeval manuscripts throughout these countries. Examples of such are a Richard Owen, County Cambridgeshire, and a Nicholas Oweyn, County Oxfordshire, who were recorded in the 'Hundred Rolls', England, in the year 1273. A Daniell, son of John Abowen, was baptised in Saint Peters, Cornhill, in the year 1568. A Thomas Bowen was registered in the University of Oxford, in the year 1582.

In Ireland this name and its variants were introduced into Ulster Province by settlers who arrived from England and Scotland, especially during the seventeenth century. During the 'Plantations of Ireland' in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries Ireland was colonized by the English Crown with this period marking the end of Gaelic supremacy in Ireland. This period brought an influx of settlers into the country but, unlike the earlier Anglo-Norman invasion of the twelfth century that resulted in a full integration into Irish society of the new arrivals, the same never occurred with the Ulster Planters who maintained their own distinct identity.

Bowen is also found in County Cork since the sixteenth century where the town of Bowenscourt still exists. Bohane and Bowen are also forms of the Norman name 'de Bohun'. The Bowen family crest (or coat of arms) came into existence many centuries ago. The process of creating these coats of arms began as early as the eleventh century although a form of Proto-Heraldry may have existed in some countries prior to this, including Ireland. The new more formalized art of Heraldry made it possible for families and even individual family members to have their very own family crest, coat of arms, including Bowen descendants.