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Egar History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Egar History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland
Scotland

The origins of the name Egar are from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It is derived from the baptismal name for the son of Edgar. Baptismal names are a form of patronymic surnames, which come from the vernacular and religious naming traditions. In this case, the bearer of the surname Egar took his name from his father's given name, Edgar. Another source claims the name literally means "happy spear" or "blessed spear." "Eádgár was one of the commonest of Anglo-Saxon personal names." 1

Early Origins of the Egar family

The surname Egar was first found in Berwickshire. "Eadgar, a well-known and royal personal name among the A-Saxons. There are probably several distinct families of this designation. The Scottish family deduce themselves from Gospatrick, earl of Northumberland, temp. William I., who was a kinsman of Eadgar Atheling, and a descendant of king Eadgar, great grandson of Alfred the Great. The Edgars of Suffolk claim from a John Edgar of Dunwich, living in 1237." 2

Edgar or Eadger (944-975), was the King of the English, the younger son of Eadmund the Magnificent and the sainted Ælfgifu. "He was twenty-nine at the time of his coronation in 973 (Anglo-Saxon Chron. sub ann. 972; Flor. Wig. sub ann. 973). He was probably brought up at the court of his uncle Eadred for his name, coupled with that of his brother Eadwig [see Edwy], is appended to a charter of Eadred dated 955." 3

Edgar (1072-1107), King of Scotland was the eldest surviving son of Malcolm Canmore and Margaret, sister of Edgar Atheling, named after his Saxon uncle, was the first king who united Scottish and Saxon blood. "Canmore was slain by an ambush near Alnwick on 13 Nov. 1093, when engaged in a raid on northern England; his eldest son, Edward, fell at the same time or a day or two after. Edgar brought the fatal news to his mother, then in the castle of Edinburgh. Already enfeebled with illness she saw it in his face before he spoke, and adjured him to tell the truth. When told that both her husband and first-born were slain, she prayed to Christ." 3

Scotland records for the family were extensive and quite old. "The Edgars of Nithsdale, notwithstanding their Old English name are of Gaelic origin. Other Edgars held lands in Berwickshire of the earls of Dunbar. Edgar, son of Duvenald, son of Dunegal of Stranid (Strath Nith), held extensive lands in Nithsdale during the reign of William the Lion, and his descendants assumed the surname of Edgar." 4

Early History of the Egar family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Egar research. Another 109 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1860 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Egar History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Egar Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Egar family name include Edgar, Edgair, Eger, Eager, Edzer and others.

Early Notables of the Egar family

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

Migration of the Egar family to Ireland

Some of the Egar family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 90 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Egar migration to the United States +

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Egar surname or a spelling variation of the name include:

Egar Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Jane Egar, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1811 5
Thomas Egar, who arrived in America in 1812 5
Mary Egar, aged 24, who landed in America in 1822 5

Egar migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Egar Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Catherine Egar, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1844

Contemporary Notables of the name Egar (post 1700) +

Colin John 'Col' Egar (1928-2008), Australian Test cricket umpire

Historic Events for the Egar family +

Monongah Mine

Mr. Mike Egar (b. 1877), "Egra", Italian coal miner who was in mine 6 at the Monongah mine on 6th December 1907 when it exploded and collapsed; he died 6

Citations +

Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
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)
Monongah Mining Disaster retrieved on 8th August 2021. (Retrieved fromhttps://usminedisasters.miningquiz.com/saxsewell/monongah.htm).