| ![Show Contents]() Dowis History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 Scotland Dalriada, in ancient Scotland, is where the name Dowis evolved. It was a name for someone who lived in the Macildowie territory. The name Dowie is a shortened form of the place-name, and surname, Macildowie. In Gaelic, MacIldowie means "son of the black lad" 1 Early Origins of the Dowis familyThe surname Dowis was first found in on the Isle of Iona. A very rare surname, one of the first records was of "John Mc John Dowy in Boespick and Thomas Mc Allester Dowie in Dalquhalliche [who] were fined for reset of Clan Gregor, 1613." 1 Some of the family may be indeed English, as in Devon we found "Bampton affords a notable instance of decadence. A very poor little market-town now, it was once the head of an honour held of the Conqueror by Walter de Douay. Previously it had formed part of the royal demesne. Domesday records a population of 68, including 15 swineherds. BAMPTON affords a notable instance of decadence. A very poor little market-town now, it was once the head of an honour held of the Conqueror by Walter de Douay. Previously it had formed part of the royal demesne. A hide adjacent to the manor had been held by five thanes, and here Walter had three tenants, with eight serfs, bordars, and villeins. Walter de Douay's son, Robert de Bampton, had an only daughter, who brought the manor to the Paganells and thence again it passed to the Cogans by the marriage." 2 Early History of the Dowis familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dowis research. Another 103 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1400, 1671 and 1697 are included under the topic Early Dowis History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Dowis Spelling VariationsMedieval translation of Gaelic names could not be referred to as an accurate process. Spelling was not yet standardized, and names in documents from that era are riddled with spelling variations. Dowis has been written as Dowie, Dowey, Douie, Douey, MacIldowie, MacIldowy and others. Early Notables of the Dowis familyMore information is included under the topic Early Dowis Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
 Dowis migration to the United States | + |
Descendents of Dalriadan-Scottish families still populate many communities across North America. They are particularly common in Canada, since many went north as United Empire Loyalists at the time of the American War of Independence. Much later, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the highland games and Clan societies that now dot North America sprang up, allowing many Scots to recover their lost national heritage. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America bore the name Dowis, or a variant listed above:
Dowis Settlers in United States in the 19th Century- J P Dowis, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 3
Dowis Settlers in United States in the 20th Century- Green E. Dowis, aged 51, who landed in America, in 1919
| Contemporary Notables of the name Dowis (post 1700) | + |
- Michael "Dee" Dowis (1968-2016), American quarterback for the United States Air Force Academy football team (1986 to 1989), inductee to the Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame
- Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
- Worth, R.N., A History of Devonshire London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, E.G., 1895. Digital
- 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)
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Dowis migration to the United States 
