| ![Show Contents]() Coster History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
Etymology of CosterWhat does the name Coster mean? The name Coster is derived from the Middle English word "costard" which is "‘a prominently ribbed apple, a kind of large apple, but the word was evidently also known as a personal name." 1 Later, it defined a person who made a type of apple dumpling, a delicacy popular in early days. The final "d" from variants like Costard and Costerd was frequently dropped in later years. In France the word "castor" literally translates as "beaver." And in this case as in the former, the name is understood to be an occupational name. Early Origins of the Coster familyThe surname Coster was first found in Lincolnshire where Alexander filius Costard was registered in the Pipe Rolls of 1203. In the Latin for, Roger Costardus was listed in Norfolk 1175-1186 and later Richard Costard was found in the Assize Rolls for Wiltshire in 1249. 1 The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed Reginald Costard, Gloucestershire; Emma Costard, Oxfordshire; and Richard Costard, Cambridgeshire and later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 included an entry for Thomas Costard. 2 The source Placita de Quo Warranto, temp. Edward I-III had two entries for the family: John Costard, Lincolnshire; and Margery Costard, Lincolnshire. Early History of the Coster familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Coster research. Another 67 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1420, 1710 and 1782 are included under the topic Early Coster History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Coster Spelling VariationsCoster, Costar, Costard, Costerman Early Notables of the Coster family- Robert Coster who married Grace Pendarves, daughter of Sir William Pendarves of St. Ives
Coster Rankingthe United States, the name Coster is the 18,757th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3 However, in France, the name Coster is ranked the 8,873rd most popular surname with an estimated 500 - 1,000 people with that name. 4
| Coster migration to the United States | + |
Coster Settlers in United States in the 17th Century- Andrew Coster, who landed in Virginia in 1653 5
- Hans Coster, who arrived in America in 1657 5
- Cornelis Coster, who arrived in New York in 1658 5
- Hendrik Coster, who arrived in New Netherland in 1658
- Hendrik Coster, who landed in New Netherland(s) in 1658 5
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Coster Settlers in United States in the 18th Century- David Coster, who arrived in Maryland in 1733
- H. Henry Coster, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1753
- Joshua Coster, who arrived in New England in 1774
- Henry A. Coster, who settled in New York in 1784
- Henry A Coster, who landed in New York in 1784 5
Coster Settlers in United States in the 19th Century- Abraham Coster, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1803 5
- Friderick Coster, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1803 5
- Charles Henry Coster, who settled in Philadelphia in 1810
- Pedro A Coster, aged 28, who arrived in Key West, Fla in 1845 5
- Stephen Coster, aged 30, who landed in Mobile County, Ala in 1845 5
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
| Coster migration to New Zealand | + |
Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include: Coster Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century- John Coster, who landed in Nelson, New Zealand in 1842 aboard the ship Geo Fife
- John Coster, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "George Fyfe" in 1842
- Mary Coster, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "George Fyfe" in 1842
- Charles Coster, aged 18, a farm labourer, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "George Fyfe" in 1842
- Mr. Coster, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "George Fyffe" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 7th November 1842 6
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
| Coster migration to West Indies | + |
The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 7Coster Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century- Anne Coster, who settled in Barbados or Jamaica in 1674
| Contemporary Notables of the name Coster (post 1700) | + |
- Nicolas Dwynn Coster (1933-2023), English–born American actor, best known for his work on Wonder Woman, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, T. J. Hooker, and Star Trek: The Next Generation
- Charles Coster (1837-1888), American soldier and public official, Commander of a brigade at the Battle of Gettysburg
- Tracy Coster (b. 1966), Australian country music singer and songwriter
- Howard Sydney Musgrave Coster (1885-1959), British photographer, perhaps best known for his photograph of A. A. Milne with his son Christopher Robin Milne and Pooh Bear
- Elizabeth Mary Coster (b. 1982), New Zealand swimmer at the 2004 Summer Olympics and the 2006 Commonwealth Games
- Stan Coster OAM (1930-1997), Australian country musician, father of country music singer Tracy Coster
- Dirk Coster (1889-1950), Dutch physicist, Professor of Physics and Meteorology at the University of Groningen
- Charles De Coster (1827-1879), Belgian novelist
- Thomas Coster Scott (1930-2015), American NFL football linebacker for the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Giants who played from 1953 to 1964, inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
- Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
- "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
- 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)
- New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
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