Oliver Coat of Arms, Family Crest and Oliver Family History

Oliver Family History

The Oliver 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 Oliver include Ollier, Olver, Olliver and Olive. This name is usually of Anglo-Norman descent spreading to Ireland, Scotland and Wales in early times and is found in many mediaeval manuscripts in these countries. Examples of such are a Peter filius Oliver of Oxford, who was recorded in the 'Hundred Rolls', England, in the year 1273. A David Oliver and Sarah Cocks were recorded as having been married in Saint Georges Chapel, Mayfair, in the year 1750. In Scotland a Walter Olifer is recorded as having witnessed William the Lion's gift of the serf Gillemachoi de Conglud with his children and all his descendants to the Bishop of Glasgow, in the year 1180. In Ireland the name Oliver and its variants are found mostly in Ulster Province having been introduced there by settlers who arrived from England and Scotland, especially during the seventeenth century. Counties Dublin and Limerick also have a good representation of descendants of the original bearers of the name.The Oliver 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 Oliver descendants.