Show ContentsFlower History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Flower Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Etymology of Flower

What does the name Flower mean?

The name Flower is rooted in the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. It was a name for someone who was a beautiful person or perhaps of someone with a flowery personality. Further research revealed that the name is derived from the Old French word flur (which appears in Old English flur and flour), which meant flower. It could also be occupational; in the Middle Ages the word for flower and flour were the same, and might denote a maker of flour. This occupation usually shows up in a surname as Miller, though. Another occupation that could be indicated by this name is that of the fletcher, or maker of arrows. This is derived from the Old English word floer, from the Old English fla, which meant arrow. 1

Early Origins of the Flower family

The surname Flower was first found in Devon where John le Floer and William Floere were both listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. 2 "The London Directory exhibits more than a quarter of a hundred of traders bearing this beautiful surname." 3

Further to the north in Yorkshire, William Flur was recorded there in the Pipe Rolls of 1203 and later, Edmund Flour was found in the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1313. 4

Later again, the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 included Johanna Floure and Matilda Flowre. 2

Robert Flower (Floure or Fleur) (c. 1160-1218) born in York, was the son of Touk Flower, Mayor of York. Seeking a life of solitude, Robert moved into a cave by the River Nidd at Knaresborough. There he became a hermit and later a saint, through popular acclaim in the Anglican and Roman Catholic traditions; his feast day being the 24th of September. Some claim that King John visited him and Trinitarian friars venerated him.

Early History of the Flower family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Flower research. Another 101 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1300, 1367, 1379, 1386, 1387, 1400, 1428, 1498, 1588, 1624, 1658, 1674 and 1681 are included under the topic Early Flower History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Flower Spelling Variations

Flower has been spelled many different ways. Before English spelling became standardized over the last few hundred years, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. As the English language changed in the Middle Ages, absorbing pieces of Latin and French, as well as other languages, the spelling of people's names also changed considerably, even over a single lifetime. Many variations of the name Flower have been found, including Flowers, Flower and others.

Early Notables of the Flower family

  • Roger Flower (d. 1428?), Speaker of the House of Commons, son of William Flower, Sheriff of Rutland in 1386-1387. William Flower (1498?-1588), was Norroy king of arms, born at York about 1498 and was...
  • John Flower (fl. 1658), English Puritan divine and preacher, born about 1624, the son of William Flower of Cubley, Derbyshire. 5

Flower Ranking

the United States, the name Flower is the 6,083rd most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 6

Migration of the Flower family to Ireland

Some of the Flower family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 31 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Flower migration to the United States +

In an attempt to escape the chaos experienced in England, many English families boarded overcrowded and diseased ships sailing for the shores of North America and other British colonies. Those families hardy enough, and lucky enough, to make the passage intact were rewarded with land and a social environment less prone to religious and political persecution. Many of these families became important contributors to the young colonies in which they settled. Early immigration and passenger lists have documented some of the first Flowers to arrive on North American shores:

Flower Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • George Flower, who landed in Virginia in 1606
  • Thomas Flower, aged 22, who arrived in Virginia in 1623 aboard the ship "George" 7
  • Thomas Flower, aged 32, British settler who arrived in Virginia in 1635 aboard the ship "Abraham" 7
  • Xtopr Flower, who landed in Virginia in 1649 7
  • Nicho Flower, who landed in Virginia in 1649 7
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Flower Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Joseph Edward Flower, who landed in South Carolina in 1735 7
  • Lenhard Flower, aged 29, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1739 7
  • Nicholas Flower, who arrived in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 1757 7
  • Philip Flower, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1776 7
Flower Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Joseph Flower, who arrived in New York in 1825 7
  • Richard W Flower, who arrived in Arkansas in 1881 7
  • Isaac Flower, who arrived in Mississippi in 1896 7

Flower migration to Australia +

Flower Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. James Flower, English convict who was convicted in Yorkshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Florentia" on 11th August 1830, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
  • Mr. Charles Flower, (1817 - 1835), aged 18, British settler who was tried in Gloucestershire, England in March 1834 for 7 years for wounding with intent, transported aboard the "George III" on 12th December 1834, going to Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) she sunk on the 12th Marh 1835 he drowned 9
  • Mr. Samuel Flower, Welsh convict who was convicted in Brecon, Powys, Wales for life, transported aboard the "Blenheim" on 11th March 1837, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 10
  • Mr. William Wilcox Flower, (b. 1794), aged 44, English butcher who was convicted in Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England for 15 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 25th June 1838, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land), he died 1861 11
  • Mr. John Flower, (b. 1817), aged 24, English convict who was convicted in Somerset, England for 10 years for burglary, transported aboard the "David Clarke" on 3rd June 1841, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land), he died in 1909 12
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Flower 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:

Flower Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • William Flower, aged 39, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Sir Charles Forbes" in 1842
  • Elizabeth Flower, aged 38, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Sir Charles Forbes" in 1842
  • Susannah Flower, aged 17, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Sir Charles Forbes" in 1842
  • Rhoda Flower, aged 14, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Sir Charles Forbes" in 1842
  • Henry Truffitt Flower, aged 39, a carpenter, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Bombay" in 1842 13
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Flower (post 1700) +

  • Bonnie Flower (1954-2017), American musician, member of the American singing duo Wendy and Bonnie
  • Roswell P. Flower (1835-1899), American politician, governor of New York
  • Edward Fordham Flower (1805-1883), English author, younger son of Richard Flower, a brewer, banker, agriculturist, and breeder of sheep, born at Marden Hall, Hertfordshire, on 31 Jan. 1805 14
  • Eliza Flower (1803-1846), English musical composer, elder daughter of Benjamin Flower, born at Harlow, Essex, 19 April 1803
  • Benjamin Flower (1755-1829), English political writer, born in London in 1755, was the son of a prosperous tradesman, to a share of whose business he succeeded, uncle of Edward Fordham Flower 15
  • Gilly Flower (1908-2001), English actress best remembered as the elderly Miss Abitha Tibbs in the cult BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers
  • Sir William Henry Flower (1831-1899), English zoologist
  • Desmond Flower, prolific Australian writer
  • Robert Flower (b. 1955), Australian rules Footballer
  • ... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Suggested Readings for the name Flower +

  • Flowers Chronicles: Studies of Captain John Flower, II (1595-1657), Mariner of London, Bermuda and Virginia and Some of His Descendants in the American South by Pugh B. Flowers.
  1. Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
  2. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  3. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  4. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  5. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  6. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  7. 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)
  8. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 11th October 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/florentia
  9. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 5th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/george-the-third
  10. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 15th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/blenheim
  11. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 19th March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/coromandel
  12. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 3rd June 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/david-clarke
  13. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 7th November 2010). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  14. Wikisource contributors. "Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900." Wikisource . Wikisource , 4 Jun. 2018. Web. 30 June 2020

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