First found in Cambridge where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor. After the Battle of Hastings in 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, having prevailed over King Harold, granted most of Britain to his many victorious Barons. It was not uncommon to find a Baron, or a Bishop, with 60 or more Lordships scattered throughout the country. These he gave to his sons, nephews and other junior lines of his family and they became known as under-tenants. They adopted the Norman system of surnames which identified the under-tenant with his holdings so as to distinguish him from the senior stem of the family. After many rebellious wars between his Barons, Duke William, commissioned a census of all England to determine in 1086, settling once and for all, who held which land. He called the census the Domesday Book, indicating that those holders registered would hold the land until the end of time. Hence, conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands of Boselinus de Dive, a knight of archbishop Lanfranc of Christ Church, Canterbury, who was recorded in the Domesday Book census of 1086. He was listed as Dives sur Mer, from Calvados in Normandy. This great family held all the lands of Dives near Caen.

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More about the dive History...

Please remember that this page is only a small extract of our complete history that includes:

• Ancient origin of the name (usually pre-1100)
• Known spelling variations
• Early movement of the family name during the Middle Ages
• Noteworthy bearers from the 1500-1600s
• First settlers to North America
• Notable contemporary bearers of the name
• A description and/or full color picture of the Coat of Arms, Crest, and Motto (where available)

Some of the first settlers of this family name or some of its variants were: Judith Dives, who arrived in Virginia in 1701; William Divers, who arrived in New England in 1725; George Divers, who came to New York in 1758; Charles Divers, who settled in San Francisco in 1852.

For more information on the last name dive, the PDF Surname History is available for purchase as well as other products.