Sturdivant History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The evidence is not conclusive, "but the name (found also as Startivant) is apparently a nickname—‘Start Away’ !—for a messenger or pursuivant [from Middle English sterten, to start, and Anglo-French ava(u)nt, forward, away, Old French avant, Latin ab ante]" 1

Bardsley agrees with this origin of the name and negates the idea that "this sobriquet would seem to be a compound of sturdy, rash, inconsiderate; and avaunt, a boast, a vaunt, and also an old French sobriquet for some reckless boaster. " (Bardlsey)

Early Origins of the Sturdivant family

The surname Sturdivant was first found in Yorkshire, where the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 include a few early spellings: Willeimus Styrtauant; Willeimus Stirciuant; and Robertas Stircyuant. All held lands there at that time. 2

Later John Stirtava(u)nt was listed in the Yorkshire in 1404; Richard and Thomas Stirtava(u)nt were listed as Freemen of York in 1413 and 1447. Alan Stertevaunt was listed in Yorkshire in 1445. 3

Early History of the Sturdivant family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Sturdivant research. Another 100 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1379, 1570, 1604, 1685, 1780, 1782, 1812, 1830 and 1868 are included under the topic Early Sturdivant History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Sturdivant Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Sturtevant, Sturdivantt, Sturtivantt, Sturtivant, Sturdevant, Sturdivant, Sturtifant, Sturdifant, Sturdyvant, Sturdyfant, Sturtevant, Sturdavent and many more.

Early Notables of the Sturdivant family

Distinguished members of the family include

The Sturdivant Gang was a multi-generational, American family of counterfeiters, whose criminal activities took place over a fifty-year period, from the 1780s, in Connecticut and Massachusetts...
Captain Ephraim Sturdivant (1782-1868) was an American veteran of the War of 1812 who named Cumberland, Maine...

Sturdivant Ranking

In the United States, the name Sturdivant is the 4,543^rd most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 4

Sturdivant migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Sturdivant Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Mary Sturdivant, who landed in Virginia in 1665 5
William Sturdivant, who landed in Maryland in 1669 5
Richard Sturdivant, who arrived in Maryland in 1671 5

Sturdivant Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Joseph Sturdivant, who settled in Philadelphia in 1832

Contemporary Notables of the name Sturdivant (post 1700) +

Roswell S. Sturdivant, nicknamed "Bloody Jack" Sturdivant, American counterfeiter who led the Sturdivant Gang, a multi-generational family group of counterfeiters founded in the 1810s
John Sturdivant (b. 1956), former American CFL and NFL football defensive linemen
Captain Ephraim Sturdivant (1782-1868), American veteran of the War of 1812, first person to bring merino sheep to Maine, 1st treasurer of Maine
Quantavius "Quan" Sturdivant (b. 1988), American football linebacker who played from 2011 to 2013
Thomas Virgil "Tom" Sturdivant (1930-2009), American Major League Baseball pitcher who played from 1955 to 1964, nicknamed "Snake" for his curveball
Trinton Sturdivant (b. 1989), American football offensive tackle

Citations +

Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)