Aylward Coat of Arms, Family Crest and Aylward Family History

Aylward Family History

The Aylward ancient family history was found in the irishsurnames.com archives.

Surnames developed a wide number of variants over the centuries. Many different spelling variations of the same name can be traced back to a single original root. Also, when a bearer of a name emigrated from Ireland it was not uncommon that their original name would be incorrectly transcribed in the record books upon arrival at their new location. Some names have dozens of spelling variations. Some Surnames were also altered over the years based on how they sounded phonetically, by their sound, and depending on the prevailing political conditions it may have been advantageous to change a name from one language to another. This was especially so in Ireland where most Gaelic names were 'anglicized' at some stage.

Variants of the name Aylward include Aylard, Elward and Hallward. This is a baptismal name meaning 'the son of Aylward'. This name is of English descent and is found in many ancient manuscripts in that country. Examples of such are a Bernard Aylward, County Wiltshire, who was recorded in the 'Hundred Rolls', England, in the year 1273 and a Beatrix Aylward, County Buckinghamshire, was also recorded in the same year in this ancient document.

Names were recorded in these ancient documents to make it easier for their overlords to collect taxes and to keep records of the population at any given time. When the overlords acquired land by either force or gifts from their rulers, they created charters of ownership for themselves and their vassals. It was by the method of creating and updating these old reference books that they were able to maintain their authority and enforce laws.

In Ireland this name is of Anglo-Norman origin and has been associated with Waterford City since the fourteenth century. The original form was Aighleart. The variant Elward can be found in Carrick-on-Suir in County Tipperary.The Aylward 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 Aylward descendants.