Bevill History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Early Origins of the Bevill family

The surname Bevill was first found in Cornwall where conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands of Gwarnock, held by the Sir de Beville from the Earl of Moron, who was recorded in the Domesday Book census of 1086. 1

"The Bevills, sprung probably from the Norman [(William the Conqueror)] of Hastings, were seated in Cornwall. Matilda daughter and co-heir of John Bevill, Esq. of Gwarnock, married Sir Richard Granville, of Buckland, Marshal of Calais, temp. Henry VIII., and had a son, Sir Richard Granville, a famous sea captain in the time of Elizabeth, whose grandson was the renowned Sir Bevill Granville, one of the boldest and most successful of the Cavalier commanders. His last action was at Lansdown Hill, near Bath, and there he terminated his gallant career by an heroic death." 2

"On a barton called Polterworgie, [in the parish of St. Kew] was a seat of the Bevilles, although at present nothing but a farm house remains." 3

They were descended from Le Sire de Beville from Beuville near Caen in Normandy. 4 The Sire married a Gwarnack heiress.

The Domesday Book of 1086 lists William de Beevilla as holding lands in Suffolk at that time and Matthew de Beyvill witnessed a charter of Henry II. (Mon. ii. 247). Richard de Bevill was seneschal of the Archbishop of York, 1301. 5

In those days the name became widely influential and populated throughout southern England in Essex at Wykes priory, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Gloucestershire was known in eleven different counties undertook a variety of spellings.

Early History of the Bevill family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bevill research. Another 112 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1075, 1165, 1179, 1286, 1301, 1316, 1317, 1348, 1350, 1381, 1390, 1430, 1432, 1434, 1480, 1487, 1510, 1511, 1517, 1533 and 1600 are included under the topic Early Bevill History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bevill Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Bevill, Beville, Bevile, Bevell, Bevel, Bevil, Beavil, Beavill, Beaville, Biville, Buiville, Buivill, Boiville, Boisville, Boville, Boyville, Belville, Bovile and many more.

Early Notables of the Bevill family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

Richard de Bevill who became seneschal to the Archbishop of York in 1301
One lineage includes: Sir Richard de Welles Bevill (c. 1286-1316); Robert de Beyvll (de Beville) (1317-1348); John de Beyville (c. 1350-1432); Thomas Beville, de Beville (c. 1390-1434); William Bevill...

Bevill Ranking

In the United States, the name Bevill is the 16,250^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 6

Bevill migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Bevill or a variant listed above were:

Bevill Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Edward Bevill, Robert Bevill, Noah Bevill, and James Bevill who all arrived in South Carolina between the years 1670 and 1684
John Bevill, a servant sent to Virginia in 1676
Tho Bevill, who arrived in Virginia in 1695
Mary Bevill, a bonded passenger sent to Barbados or Jamaica in 1698

Contemporary Notables of the name Bevill (post 1700) +

Lisa Bevill (b. 1961), American Contemporary Christian musician
Tom Bevill (1921-2005), American Democratic Party politician, a fifteen-term U.S. congressman representing Alabama's 4th Congressional District (1967 to 1997)

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Burke, John Bernard, The Roll of Battle Abbey. London: Edward Churton, 26, Holles Street, 1848, Print.
Hutchins, Fortescue, The History of Cornwall, from the Earliest Records and Traditions to the Present Time. London: William Penaluna, 1824. Print
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/