Contents [hide]

Giraud History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Giraud History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France
Italy

A variety of distinguished and notable names have emerged from the beautiful and historical Italian region of Tuscany, including the notable surname Giraud. During the Middle Ages, as populations grew and travel between regions became more frequent, the people of Tuscany, who were originally known only by a single name, found it necessary to adopt a second name to identify themselves and their families. This process of adopting fixed hereditary surnames in Italy began in the 10th and 11th centuries, but it was not completed until the modern era. The development of Italian hereditary surnames followed general principles and were characterized by derivatives from one's given name. The patronymic surname, which is derived from the father's given name, was one of the most common name types found in the region of Tuscany. This system of name-making was widely used because it linked well with the existing Feudal System and during the Christian era, many people named their children after saints and biblical figures. The surname Giraud came from the personal name Gerard, which was itself derived from the Old German Gerhard, which means spear-brave.

Early Origins of the Giraud family

The surname Giraud was first found in Tuscany (Italian: Toscana), a region in central Italy, in the northern area of the Garfagnana. Records can be found as early as 970, with the Gherardinghi family who owned the castles of Verrucola, Bibbiano, Bogli, San Romano, and Sommacologna.

Early History of the Giraud family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Giraud research. The years 1358, 1367, 1440, 1638 and 1702 are included under the topic Early Giraud History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Giraud Spelling Variations

Italian surnames have a surprising number of forms in comparison with other European surnames because they reflect the regional variations and the many dialects of the Italian language, each of which has its distinctive features. For example, in Northern Italy the most standard Italian surname suffix is "I", whereas in Southern Italy the most typical surname suffix is "O". Sardinian is very different from other forms of Italian and in fact, it is considered to be its own distinct language. Additionally, spelling changes frequently occurred because medieval scribes, church officials, and the bearers of names, spelled names as they sounded rather than according to any specific spelling rules. As a consequence of the major changes in the Italian language and in the local spellings of Italian surnames that occurred over the course of history, there are numerous variations for the surname Giraud. These spelling variations include Gherardi, Gherardo, Gherardis, Ghirardi, Ghirardo, Gherlardi, Ghelardo, Ghilardi, Gerardi, Gheraldi, Ghiraldi, Ghiroldi, Geraldi, Geraldo, Geroldi, Giraldi, Giraldo, Ciraldo, Giraudo, Giraud, Girod, Giroldi, Gherardelli, Gherardini, Gherardinghi, Gerardini, Gerardello, Gherarducci, Gherardeschi, Della Gherardesca, Ghirardelli, Ghilardini, Ghelardini, Girardini, Girardin, Girardoni, Girardone, Girardengo, Geraldini and many more.

Early Notables of the Giraud family

Prominent among members of the family was Ugolino Della Gherardesca, a Pisan Ghibelline leader during the 13th century. The Gherardesca family of Pisa was one of the most powerful and respected families in the city at this time. Of this family was Pietro Gherardesca, Cardinal of Pisa with the title of San Susanna; also of this family was Ugolino Gherardesca, who was written about by Dante Alighieri. Guelfo Gerardini was head of the Guelph faction in Florence in 1358...
Another 79 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Giraud Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Giraud Ranking

In France, the name Giraud is the 88^th most popular surname with an estimated 30,696 people with that name. 1

Giraud migration to the United States +

Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Giraud were

Giraud Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Daniel Giraud, who arrived in New York in 1698 2

Giraud Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Joseph Giraud, who arrived in New York in 1798 2

Giraud Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Ernest Giraud, who landed in New York in 1851 2
Jean Giraud, aged 34, who landed in America, in 1893
Emma Giraud, aged 20, who immigrated to the United States, in 1895

Giraud Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Andre Giraud, aged 38, who settled in America from Paris, in 1905
Damian Giraud, aged 50, who landed in America from Orcieres, France, in 1908
Elisa Giraud, aged 26, who settled in America from Toulouse, France, in 1910
Constance Giraud, aged 29, who immigrated to the United States, in 1911
Fernand Giraud, aged 27, who immigrated to the United States from Paris, France, in 1912
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Giraud migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Giraud Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century

Pierre Giraud, who landed in Acadia in 1686

Giraud Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century

Antoine Giraud, aged 20, who settled in Montreal, Canada, in 1917

Contemporary Notables of the name Giraud (post 1700) +

Daniel Giraud (1946-2023), French essayist, translator, and poet
Claude Giraud (1936-2020), French theatre and film actor
Herbert John Giraud (1817-1888), English physician, chemist, and botanist, second son and youngest child of John Thomas Giraud (1764–1836), a surgeon at Faversham, Kent
Adrien Giraud (1936-2018), French politician, member of the Senate of France
Hubert Yves Adrian Giraud (1920-2016), French composer and lyricist
Antoine Giraud, French Brigadier General during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars from 1789 to 1815 3
Yvette Giraud (b. 1916), French singer from Paris
Robert Giraud (1921-1997), French poet and journalist
Jean-Baptiste Giraud (1752-1830), French sculptor from Aix-en-Provence
Jean Giraud (1936-2007), French mathematician
... (Another 4 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
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)
Generals Who Served in the French Army during the Period 1789-1815. (Retrieved 2015, March 6) Antoine Giraud. Retrieved from http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/c_frenchgenerals.html