Show ContentsColfer History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Colfer family

The surname Colfer was first found in County Wexford (Irish: Loch Garman), founded by Vikings as Waesfjord, and located in Southeastern Ireland, in the province of Leinster, where the "cross Calfer" is named in an old Wexford rhyme listing the families of the area and their attributes. Colfer is also found early on in the southern Counties of Ireland, where it was on record as Coylefer in the early 14th century.

Early History of the Colfer family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Colfer research. Another 38 words (3 lines of text) covering the years 1666 and 1853 are included under the topic Early Colfer History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Colfer Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Colfer, Culpher, Coylefer, Calfer, Calfe and others.

Early Notables of the Colfer family

Notable among the family name at this time was

  • the Colfer family of Wexford


United States Colfer migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Colfer Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • John Colfer, who was recorded as a British alien in Maryland during the War of 1812
  • John Colfer, aged 30, who landed in Maryland in 1812 [1]
  • James Colfer, naturalized in Philadelphia in 1856
  • Mary Colfer, who landed in New York in 1866
  • Bridget, James, and John Colfer, who landed in New York in 1867
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Colfer Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • John Colfer was naturalized in Indiana between 1910 and 1916

Contemporary Notables of the name Colfer (post 1700) +

  • Jeremy C. Colfer (b. 1975), American movie producer and production manager
  • Christopher Paul "Chris" Colfer (b. 1990), American Golden Globe Award winning actor and singer, known for his portrayal of Kurt Hummel on Glee
  • Ned Colfer (b. 1941), Irish retired hurler for Wexford (1962-1970)
  • Martin Colfer (d. 2015), Irish footballer for Shelbourne (1948-1956) and for the Republic of Ireland National Team (1950-1951)
  • Eoin Colfer (b. 1965), Irish author of young adult fiction
  • Terence Colfer, Canadian civil administrator, and diplomat, Director, United States Trade and Tourism Development Division, from 1988 to 1990


  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)


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