Abbott Coat of Arms, Family Crest and Abbott Family History

Abbott Family History

The ancient origin of the name Abbott was found in the irishsurnames.com archives. Abbott is an occupational name meaning 'the Abbott', from a person with this high religious office. Variants include Abbot, Abbitt, Abotson and Abbett. This name is of Anglo-Saxon descent spreading to the Celtic countries of Ireland, Scotland and Wales in early times and is found in many mediaeval manuscripts throughout these countries. Examples of such are a Henry Abbod, County Oxfordshire, a William Abbod, County Oxfordshire, and a Adam Abbot, Huntingdonshire, who were all recorded in the 'Hundred Rolls', England, in the year 1273. An Edward Sanders and Anne Abbit were married in Saint Antholin, London, in the year 1720.

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.

Abbot has also existed in Dublin since the fourteenth century. In Gaelic the name is rendered as 'Aboid'.The Abbott 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 Abbott descendants.