Cowlard History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The generations and branches of the Cowlard family share a name that has its roots in the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. The name Cowlard comes from the given name Nicholas. A common diminutive of the name Nicholas was Col. The suffix "ard" was a Norman French suffix that meant "son of." 1

Another source notes that the name could have been derived "from the Anglo-Saxon col, [meaning] a helmet, and heard, hard." 2

And yet another source claims the name could be Norman in origin deriving from Hamon, William, and Geoffry Coillart of Normandy, 1180-95 . 3 Of this latter source, it seems unlikely.

Early Origins of the Cowlard family

The surname Cowlard was first found in Essex and Sussex where they held a family seat from very early times.

"The Collards of Kent may find an ancestor in Simon Colard, who represented Dover in Parliament in the reign of Edward III. Christopher Collard was rector of Blackmanstone in the time of Charles I." 4

The name was "found in Gloucestershire as a personal name, it still remains there as a surname" as shown by the first record of the family, Colard Hariel, Gloucestershire who was listed there in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. 5

Listings of the name as a personal name continued in the 13th century where Colard le Fauconer was listed in Essex in 1264. It was not until 1332 when Richard Colard was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1332 did records show the name as a surname. 1

Early History of the Cowlard family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cowlard research. Another 187 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1264, 1595, 1666, 1769, 1772, 1786, 1799, 1800, 1807, 1817, 1831, 1842, 1851 and 1860 are included under the topic Early Cowlard History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cowlard Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Cowlard include Callard, Collard, Collarde, Colard, Colarde, Cullard, Collart, Collerd and many more.

Early Notables of the Cowlard family

Notables of the family at this time include Frederick Willam Collard (1772-1860), English pianoforte manufacturer, son of William and Thamosin Collard, baptised at Wiveliscombe, Somersetshire, on 21 June 1772. He ventured to "London at the age of fourteen, obtained a situation in the house of Longman, Lukey, & Broderip, music publishers and pianoforte makers at 26 Cheapside. In 1799 Longman & Co. fell into commercial difficulties, and a new company, consisting of John Longman, Muzio Clementi, Frederick Augustus Hyde, F. W. Collard, Josiah Banger, and David Davis, took over the business, but on 28 June 1800 Longman and Hyde retired, and...
Another 148 words (11 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Cowlard Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Cowlard family

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Cowlard or a variant listed above: Mary Collard who settled in Barbados in 1686; Stephen Collard settled in Maryland in 1737; Thomas Collard settled in Charles Town [Charleston], South Carolina in 1822.

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
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)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. 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)