Show ContentsCarriou History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Carriou has a history dating as far back as the early portion of the Middle Ages. It was a Languedoc name for a carter. Tracing the origin of the name further, we found the name Carriou was originally from the Old French word "carrier," which means "carter".

Early Origins of the Carriou family

The surname Carriou was first found in Languedoc, where the family has held a family seat since ancient times.

The name was first found in Canada with Jean Carrier in 1670. 1 Jean was born in France in 1640 and is the son of Jean and Jeanne (née Dodier). After arriving in Quebec he married Barbe Halay, daughter of Jean and Mathurine (née Vallet), on 14th November 1670. 2

Early History of the Carriou family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Carriou research. Another 272 words (19 lines of text) covering the years 1662, 1683, 1717 and 1825 are included under the topic Early Carriou History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Carriou Spelling Variations

Most surnames have experienced slight spelling changes. A son may not chose to spell his name the same way that his father did. Many were errors, many deliberate. During the early development of the French language, a person usually gave his version, phonetically, to a scribe, a priest, or a recorder. Prefixes or suffixes varied. They were optional as they passed through the centuries, or were adopted by different branches to signify either a political or religious adherence. Hence, there a many spelling variations of the name Carriou, including Carrier, Carier, Carrié, Carié, Carriey, Carriay, Carryer, Caryer, Carriaie, Carriais, Cariaie, Cariais, De Carrier, De Carier, De Carrié, De Carié, De Carriey, De Carriay, De Carryer, De Caryer, De Carraie, De Carriais, De Cariaie, De Cariais, Du Carrier, Du Carier, Du Carrié, Du Carié, Du Carriey, Du Carriay, Du Carryer, Du Caryer, Du Carriaie, Du Carriais, Du Cariaie, Du Cariais, Le Carrier, Le Carier and many more.

Early Notables of the Carriou family

Another 28 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Carriou Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Carriou family

Migration from France to New France or Quebec as it was now more popularly called, continued from France until it fell in 1759. 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 the treaty of Utrecht, the Acadians were ceded by France to Britain in 1713. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported. They found refuge in Louisiana. In 1793, the remaining French in these provinces came under British rule. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many of this distinguished family name Carriou were prominent in social, cultural, religious and political affairs in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Carriou were Archibald Carrier, aged 45; settled in Philadelphia in 1822; Arthur Carrier settled in Philadelphia in 1865; Flora Carrier, aged 40; settled in Philadelphia in 1865 with 2 children.



  1. Hozier, Charles D, and Antoine Bachelin-Delforenne. État présent De La Noblesse française (1883-1887): Contenant Le Distionnaire De La Noblesse Contemporaine Et Larmorial général De France, Dapres Les Manuscrits De Ch. D Hozier. Librairie Des Bibliophiles, 1884. Print.
  2. Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print


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