Commer History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The name Commer first arose amongst the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. It is derived from their having lived in a small valley. The surname Commer is derived from the Old English word cumb, which means valley. The surname Commer belongs to the large class of Anglo-Saxon topographic surnames, which were given to people who resided near physical features such as hills, streams, churches, or types of trees.

Alternatively, the name could have been an occupational name for 'the comber,' as in 'the wool comber.' 1 "The early importance of this occupation was bound to create and preserve this surname. " 2

Early Origins of the Commer family

The surname Commer was first found in various counties an shires throughout ancient Britain. By example, the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed: Richard le Cumbere in Cambridgeshire; and John le Cumbur in Oxfordshire. 2

Ralph (le) Cambere was listed in the Pipe Rolls for Lincolnshire (1201-1202.) Reginald Combere (le Camber) was found in the Curia Regis Rolls for Hertfordshire in 1220 and Ralph le Combere and William le Comere were found in Norfolk in 1286. William le Combere was listed in the Assize Rolls of Cheshire in 1260 and later, John Comber was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1296. 3

John a Kent and John a Cumber is a sixteenth-century English play by Anthony Munday (c. 1560-1633.) The exact dating of the play is not known but we do know that it was being performed on stage as early as 1587. It is generally thought that in this case, the comedic play's character was in fact John a' Cumber (relating to Cumberland) The play has parallels with Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream.

Early History of the Commer family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Commer research. Another 72 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1260, 1296, 1575, 1631, 1644, 1645, 1649, 1653, 1660, 1689 and 1699 are included under the topic Early Commer History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Commer Spelling Variations

One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Commer has appeared include Comber, Comer, Commber, Commer, Combers, Commers and others.

Early Notables of the Commer family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Thomas Comber (1575-1653), an English linguist, Dean of Carlisle and Master of Trinity College, Cambridge (1631-1645.) He was born at Shermanbury, Sussex, on 1 Jan. 1575, being the twelfth son of his father, who was a barrister-at-law. 4Thomas Comber (1645-1699), was an English churchman from Barkham, Sussex, Dean of Durham from 1689. He "was descended from an ancient family at Barkham, Sussex. His father, James Comber, was the fourth son of John Comber, who was uncle to Thomas Comber, Dean of Carlisle. Thomas was born at Westerham on 19 March 1644-5...
Another 98 words (7 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Commer Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Commer family to Ireland

Some of the Commer family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 48 words (3 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Commer migration to the United States +

At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Commer arrived in North America very early:

Commer Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Dannill Commer, aged 19, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1736 5
Hance Commer, aged 46, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1736 5

Commer 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:

Commer Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Edward John Commer, (b. 1841), aged 20, English farm labourer, from Middlesex travelling from London aboard the ship "Sebastopol" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 14th December 1861 6

The Commer Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Sapiens dominabitur astris
Motto Translation: A wise man can rule the stars.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. 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)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
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)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html