Show ContentsKote History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Kote name comes from that Medieval landscape of southern France known as Languedoc. The name Kote was originally derived from the family having lived in Languedoc, where the family was found since the early Middle Ages.

Early Origins of the Kote family

The surname Kote was first found in Languedoc, where they are recorded as one of the distinguished ancient families of that region.

The Cot or Côté family were well educated and learned people and there are many instances in the records of this. The Les Cot family of Limoges developed one of the first printing methods, with hot lead type, which they took to Paris in the 1600's. Pierre was an author of a book on the origins of printing in 1707.

Jean Pierre Cote, a noted poet, was born in Briancon in 1810. Jean-Leopold left on his death a "Dictionnaire de la législation des états sardes" in 1841. Jean André de Cot, descended from the Tournon branch of the family and, born in Briancon in 1789, campaigned against the war of the Empire, and his son Alexis was the owner of the "Journal de Tournon".

Jean Côté settled in Quebec in 1634 and married Anne Martin on 17th November 1635. Together they had five sons that carried on the family name of Côté. Jean was buried in Quebec on 28th March 1661. 1

Early History of the Kote family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kote research. Another 175 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1472, 1530, 1532, 1539, 1540, 1543, 1549, 1564, 1575, 1589, 1595, 1604, 1613, 1626, 1656, 1681 and 1735 are included under the topic Early Kote History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kote Spelling Variations

History has changed the spelling of most surnames. During the early development of the French language in the Middle Ages, a person gave his version of his name, phonetically, to a scribe, a priest, or a recorder. Some variables were adopted by different branches of the family name. Hence, there spelling variations of the name Kote, some of which include Côté, Cot, Cotte, Cott, Kott, Kote, Cotée, Cotet, Cotin, Coton, Cottet, Cottin, Cotton, Cotard, Cottard, Lacotte, Cotté, Cottu, Cottarel, Cottebrune, Cotner, Cottez and many more.

Early Notables of the Kote family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Claude Cot, Treasurer of Dauphiné in 1472; Pierre Coton (1564-1626), a French Jesuit and royal confessor; Charles Cotin or Abbé Cotin (1604-1681), a French abbé, philosopher and poet; and Robert de Cotte (1656-1735), a French architect-administrator.Gaspard Coste, chorister in the cathedral of Avignon about...
Another 53 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Kote Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Kote family

Immigration to New France was slow; therefore, early marriage was desperately encouraged amongst the immigrants. The fur trade attracted migrants, both noble and commoner. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the Acadian presence in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island had reached 500. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported to Louisiana. The French founded Lower Canada, thus becoming one of the two great founding nations of Canada. The distinguished family name Kote has made significant contributions to the culture, arts, sciences and religion of France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Kote were Eliz Cote, aged 22; who settled in Virginia in 1635; Johann Hennrich Cothe settled in Pennsylvania in 1738; Auguste Kott, aged 27; settled in Texas in 1846.



  1. Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print


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