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Show ContentsGabriel History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
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Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

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Gabriel is a name of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from Gabriel or Cebrail, an archangel in the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament, and the Quran. 1 2 The name denotes "descendant of Gabriel (God is my strength)." 3 The Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae records William Gabriel of Normandy in 1195. 4

Early Origins of the Gabriel family

The surname Gabriel was first found in Sussex where the Curia Regis Rolls of 1212 record Gabriel filius Reginaldi. Early rolls often listed this name as a forename as later the Subsidy Rolls of 1296 list Gabriele Spyg, again in Sussex. The same rolls go on to include Roger Gabyrel in the same year. In Suffolk, the Subsidy Rolls there include Nicholas Gabryel in 1327. 5

Again as a forename, we found two entries in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273: Gabriel Attelond, Kent; and Gabel Brenn, Norfolk. The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1370 had only one entry: Thomas Gabriell who held lands there at that time. 6

Further north in Scotland, the name was mostly found in Aberdeenshire. "As a forename we have Gabriel Gymmill in Edinburgh, 1599. David Gabriel, a prominent citizen in Aberdeen, died in December, 1939. I have read somewhere that the family of Gabriel of Aberdeen is descended from a Gabriel Grant, but no such person appears in Sir William Fraser's Chiefs of Grant." 7

Early History of the Gabriel family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gabriel research. Another 109 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1212, 1273, 1455, 1487, 1825 and 1867 are included under the topic Early Gabriel History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gabriel Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Gabriel have been found, including Gabriel, Gable, Gabell, Gaball, Gableson and many more.

Early Notables of the Gabriel family

Distinguished members of the family include

  • Mary Ann Virginia Gabriel, born at Banstead, Surrey, Feb. 7, 1825, learned the piano from Pixis, Döhler, and Thalberg, and harmony and construction from Molique. Her principal work was a Cantata named...

Gabriel World Ranking

In the United States, the name Gabriel is the 1,509th most popular surname with an estimated 19,896 people with that name. 8 However, in Newfoundland, Canada, the name Gabriel is ranked the 808th most popular surname with an estimated 50 people with that name. 9 And in France, the name Gabriel is the 838th popular surname with an estimated 6,113 people with that name. 10

United States Gabriel migration to the United States +

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Among the first immigrants of the name Gabriel, or a variant listed above to cross the Atlantic and come to North America were :

Gabriel Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Jane Gabriel, who landed in Virginia in 1653 11
Gabriel Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Antoine Gabriel, who arrived in Louisiana in 1719 11
  • Charles Gabriel, who settled in Louisiana in 1752
  • Henrich Burchard Gabriel, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1752 11
  • Joh Carl Gabriel, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1765 11
  • Johannes Gabriel, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1769 11
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Gabriel Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Johan Gabriel, who settled in Baltimore, Maryland with his wife Marie in the same year
  • Don Gabriel, who landed in New Orleans, La in 1827 11
  • Juan Gabriel, who arrived in Rio de la Plata in 1835 11
  • Francisco Gabriel, aged 4, who landed in New Orleans, La in 1836 11
  • Florence Gabriel, aged 10, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1836 11
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Canada Gabriel migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Gabriel Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century
  • Suzanne Gabriel, who arrived in Montreal in 1659
Gabriel Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Andre Gabriel, who settled in Codroy and Rivers, Newfoundland in 1871 12
  • Ferdinand and Frederick Gabriel, who settled in Quebec in 1873

Australia Gabriel migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Gabriel Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. William Gabriel, British Convict who was convicted in Kent, England for life , transported aboard the "Commodore Hayes" in April 1823, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 13

New Zealand Gabriel 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:

Gabriel Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Miss Mary A. Gabriel, (b. 1860), aged 23, Cornish general servant departing on 25th October 1883 aboard the ship "Waitangi" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 13th January 1884 14

West Indies Gabriel 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. 15
Gabriel Settlers in West Indies in the 18th Century
  • Benjamin Rodrigues Gabriel, who landed in Jamaica in 1740 11

Contemporary Notables of the name Gabriel (post 1700) +

  • Peter Brian Gabriel (b. 1950), British singer, musician, and songwriter, original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis, perhaps best known for his solo "Solsbury Hill," recipient of numerous awards including six Grammy Awards, thirteen MTV Video Music Awards, the first Pioneer Award at the BT Digital Music Awards, the Q magazine Lifetime Achievement, the Ivor Novello Award for Lifetime Achievement, and the Polar Music Prize and the Man of Peace award from the Nobel Peace Prize laureates in 2006, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Genesis in 2010
  • Roman Ildonzo Gabriel Jr. (1940-2024), former American football player
  • John Gabriel (1931-2021), born Jack Monkarsh, an American actor, singer-lyricist, and producer, best known for his role as Seneca Beaulac in Ryan's Hope (1975–1985) and (1988–1989)
  • Ethel Nagy Gabriel (1921-2021), American record producer and record executive, she produced over 2,500 music albums including 15 RIAA Certified Gold Records, winner of a Grammy Award in 1982 and also produced six Grammy-winning albums
  • Franklin T. Gabriel, American fighter pilot and flying ace in the U.S. Navy, during World War II, credited with 8¼ aerial victories
  • Ms. Marie Sylvia Gabriel C.B.E. (b. 1961), British Chair for East London NHS Foundation Trust, was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire on 8th June 2018, for services to the NHS 16
  • Gunter Gabriel (1942-2017), born Günter Caspelherr, a German singer, musician and composer
  • Pierre Gabriel (1933-2015), French mathematician
  • Claude Gabriel de Choisy, French Divisional General during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars from 1789 to 1815 17
  • Tony Gabriel (b. 1948), former professional Canadian football pass receiver
  • ... (Another 8 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  2. Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
  3. Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
  4. The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
  5. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  6. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  7. Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
  8. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  9. The order of Common Surnames in 1955 in Newfoundland retrieved on 20th October 2021 (retrieved from Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland by E.R. Seary corrected edition ISBN 0-7735-1782-0)
  10. http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
  11. 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)
  12. Seary E.R., Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland, Montreal: McGill's-Queen's Universtity Press 1998 ISBN 0-7735-1782-0
  13. Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 4th March 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/commodore-hayes
  14. Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 2018, April 30). Emigrants to Lyttelton 1858-84 [PDF]. Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/new_zealand_assisted.pdf
  15. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  16. "Birthday and New Year Honours Lists (1940 to 2019)." Issue 62507, 28 December 2018 | London Gazette, The Gazette, Dec. 2018, www.thegazette.co.uk/honours-lists
  17. Generals Who Served in the French Army during the Period 1789-1815. (Retrieved 2015, February 12) Claude Gabriel. Retrieved from http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/c_frenchgenerals.html
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