Beyers History, Family Crest & Coats of ArmsBehind the name Beyers is a story that begins in the ancient Scottish-English border region among the clans of the Boernician tribe. The Beyers family lived in or near the place named Byers in Scotland. The place-name, Byers, derives from the Old English word byre, which means cattle shed. 1 Thus, Byers is of two derivations, topographical and habitational. Alternatively, the name could have been Norman in origin originating a "the chateau of Biars in the canton of Isigni, La Manche, Normandy. " 2 3 Early Origins of the Beyers familyThe surname Beyers was first found in East Lothian, where they held a family seat from ancient times. One of the first records of the name related to the place name as in David de Lindsay the younger, also called David Lindsay of the Byres (died 1279), a 13th century Scottish knight and crusader. John de Pyres appears as a monk of Neubotle in 1309. Thome de Byris owned a tenement in Edinburgh in 1392, and in 1534 Thomas Byrs was admitted burgess of Aberdeen. 4 Today, Byres Road is a famous street located in Hillhead, Glasgow. In England, the first record of the family was found in Devon where Elias de la Byare was listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1275. A few years later, Willelmus del Byre was found in the Subsidy Rolls for Yorkshire in 1301 and later again, John Buyres was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Somerset in 1327. 5 Early History of the Beyers familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Beyers research. Another 141 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1309, 1392, 1534, 1593, 1639, 1653, 1681, 1690, 1694, 1733, 1750, 1790, 1817 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Beyers History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Beyers Spelling VariationsBefore the printing press and the first dictionaries appeared, names and other words were often spelled differently every time they were written. Beyers has appeared under the variations Byers, Byres, Byer, Buyers, Byris and others. Early Notables of the Beyers familyNotable amongst the family at this time was Nicholas Byer (d. 1681), Norwegian painter, a native of Drontheim in Norway. He practised portrait and historical painting, and on emigrating to England found a steady patron in Sir William Temple, at whose seat at Sheen, in Surrey, he lived for three or four years. His reputation as a face-painter must have been considerable; several persons of distinction, including some members of the royal family, sat to him. Dying at Sheen in 1681 he is said to have been the first person buried at... Beyers RankingIn the United States, the name Beyers is the 12,099th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 6 Migration of the Beyers family to IrelandSome of the Beyers family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. Migration of the Beyers familyThe Scots who crossed the Atlantic were often on the run from poverty as well as persecution. They brought little with them, and often had nothing of their home country to hand down to their children. In the 20th century, Clan societies and other patriotic Scottish organizations have helped the ancestors of Boernician Scots to recover their lost national legacy. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Beyers were among those contributors: Henry, Jacob, and Nicholas Byer who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania between 1738 and 1844; Will Byers settled in Georgia in 1734; Alexander, Robert and John Byers arrived in Philadelphia between 1816 and 1867.
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