Darvin History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Darvin is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from a family once having lived beside the river Darwen or Derwent in Lancashire. "Over and Lower Darwen are towns in the ancient parish of Blackburn, Lancashire, so called because located on the small stream the Darwen, a variation of the common river name Derwent. " 1

Early Origins of the Darvin family

The surname Darvin was first found in Lancashire. The baptismal name Derewen was found in the Domesday Book. 2 One of the first listings of the family was found in Oxfordshire in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. Years later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed: Robertus Darwent and Henricus Darwent, walker. 1

"The family home of the Darwins in the 17th century was at Cleaton in Lincolnshire, and at Elston in Nottinghamshire. From this stock sprang, last century, the noted Derbyshire Darwins, to which branch Charles Darwin, the great naturalist, belonged. " 3

Robert Darwin of Elston (1682-1754) was an English physician who discovered the first remains of a Jurassic reptile in 1718 in a stone from a quarry at Fulbeck. He was the ancestor of the famed naturalist Charles Robert Darwin (1809-1882.)

Early History of the Darvin family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Darvin research. Another 159 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1620, 1644, 1731, 1802, 1809 and 1882 are included under the topic Early Darvin History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Darvin Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Darvin has been recorded under many different variations, including Darwin, Darwen, Derwent, Darwent and others.

Early Notables of the Darvin family

Notables of the family at this time include William Darwin (d. 1644) who possessed a small estate at Cleatham, and was yeoman of the armoury at Greenwich to James I and Charles I. His son William (b. 1620) served in the Royalist Army, and afterwards became a barrister and recorder of Lincoln and married the daughter of Erasmus Earle, serjeant-at-law. His eldest son, a third William, married the...
Another 67 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Darvin Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Darvin family

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Darvin or a variant listed above: Peter Darwin who settled in Barnstable Massachusetts in 1822.

Contemporary Notables of the name Darvin (post 1700) +

Darvin Moon (1963-2020), American self-employed logger and amateur poker player who was the runner-up of the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP)
Darvin Ham (b. 1973), American former NBA professional basketball player
Darvin P. Clough, American Republican politician, Member of Wisconsin State Assembly from Walworth County, 1899-1900 4

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 15) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html