Show ContentsBrison History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The ancestors of the Brison surname lived among the Boernician people of the Scottish/English Borderlands. Brison is derived from the personal name Brice. The surname Brison is a patronymic name, which means that it is derived from the personal name of the father of the bearer. Patronymic surnames can also come from the names of religious figures, or traditional folk heroes. In Scotland, the Brison family was centered in the county of Berwick.

Early Origins of the Brison family

The surname Brison was first found in Berwickshire an ancient county of Scotland, presently part of the Scottish Borders Council Area, located in the eastern part of the Borders Region of Scotland, where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.

Early History of the Brison family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Brison research. Another 117 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1392, 1413, 1482, 1546, 1551, 1654, 1659 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Brison History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Brison Spelling Variations

Before the first dictionaries and printing presses went into use in the last few hundred years, spelling, particularly of names, was a largely intuitive matter. Consequently, many spelling variations occur in even the simplest names from the Middle Ages. Brison has been spelled Bryson, Brison and others.

Early Notables of the Brison family

More information is included under the topic Early Brison Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Brison family to Ireland

Some of the Brison family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 143 words (10 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Brison migration to the United States +

The east coasts of the United States and Canada are still populated by many of the descendents of the Boernician-Scottish families who made that great crossing. They distributed themselves evenly when they first arrived, but at the time of the War of Independence those who remained loyal to England went north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. This century, many of their ancestors have recovered their past heritage through highland games and other Scottish functions in North America. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Investigation of the origins of family names on the North American continent has revealed that many immigrants bearing the name Brison or a variant listed above:

Brison Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • John Brison, who arrived in New England in 1753 [1]
Brison Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Pedro Brison, who landed in Puerto Rico in 1816 [1]
  • James Brison, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1851
  • John Brison, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1864

Contemporary Notables of the name Brison (post 1700) +

  • Marshall Brison, American politician, Workers World Candidate for Presidential Elector for Michigan, 1980 [2]
  • Scott Brison, Canadian federal politician, Treasury Board President (2015-)
  • Brison A. Manor Jr (1952-2023), American NFL football defensive end who played eight seasons for the Denver Broncos, from 1977 to 1984, before appearing in six games with Tampa Bay Buccaneers, later in 1984


The Brison Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Vivit post funera virtus
Motto Translation: Virtue lives after death.


  1. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  2. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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