Show ContentsDe archambault History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The De archambault surname is derived from a personal name, which derives from the Latin "Arcambaldus". According to etymologists, this personal name is in turn derived from the ancient Germanic elements "Ercan", meaning "precious", and "bald", meaning "bold" and "daring". 1

Early Origins of the De archambault family

The surname De archambault was first found in Limousin, situated in the north-western part of the Massif-Central where one can trace the origin of this eminent family settled with lands and seats.

During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance some members of the family distinguished themselves through many contributions to the community and province in which they held a family seat, and some were granted certain privileges, land and a place amongst the French nobility. Through the years, some of the members branched to Orleans and south of Paris. Thus the province of Burgundy has been the seat of the eminent family of the Archambault de Beaunes for several centuries.

There is evidence of the family later branching northwards, under the name of Archambault, as the name can be found today in the Parisian region as well as in the former province of Orléanais, located around the middle of Loire. This was part of the Royal domain since the 10th century, and which was to be annexed to the French crown in the middle of the 15th century. The noble family of Archimbaud also settled in the province of Provence, located in the South of France.

Early History of the De archambault family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our De archambault research. Another 88 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1242, 1604 and 1688 are included under the topic Early De archambault History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

De archambault Spelling Variations

Throughout the course of history most surnames have undergone changes for many reasons. During the early development of the French language, a son and father may not have chosen to spell their name the same way. Many are simple spelling changes by a person who gave his name, phonetically, to a scribe, priest, or recorder. Many names held prefixes or suffixes which became optional as they passed through the centuries, or were adopted by different branches to signify either a political or religious adherence. Hence, we have many spelling variations of this name, De archambault some of which are Archambault, Archambaut, Archambeault, Archambeau, Archambeaux, Archambau, Archambaux, Archambot, Archambod, Archambode, Archambold, Archambolde, Archambote, Archambolt, Archambolte, Archambauld, Archambaulde, Archambaud, Archambaude, Archambaute, d'Archambault, d'Archambaut, d'Archambeault and many more.

Early Notables of the De archambault family

Another 41 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early De archambault Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the De archambault family

In 1643, 109 years after the first landings by Cartier, there were only about 300 people in Quebec. Migration was slow. The fur trade attracted migrants, both noble and commoner. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the French Acadian presence in the Maritimes had reached 500. The French founded Lower Canada, thus becoming one of the two great founding nations of Canada. The family name De archambault has made many distinguished contributions in France and New France to the world of science, culture, religion, and education. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name De archambault were Jacques Archambault and his wife Françoise Tourault and their six children, who left from Dompierre sur Mer in 1645-6 for Québec; Laurent Archambault married Catherine Marchand in Montré.



  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.


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