Contents [hide]

Givens History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Suggested Reading Citations

Givens History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland
Scotland

Early Origins of the Givens family

The surname Givens was first found in Lanarkshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Lannraig) a former county in the central Strathclyde region of Scotland, now divided into the Council Areas of North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire, and the City of Glasgow.

One of the earliest records of the family was Thomas Given, who witnessed a charter of "vnum rete super matricem aquam de Thei" by David de Haya to the monks of Cupre in 1214. 1

Early History of the Givens family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Givens research. Another 75 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1214, 1630 and 1655 are included under the topic Early Givens History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Givens Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Given, Givens, MacGiven, MacGivern and others.

Early Notables of the Givens family

More information is included under the topic Early Givens Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Givens Ranking

In the United States, the name Givens is the 1,326^th most popular surname with an estimated 22,383 people with that name. 2

Migration of the Givens family to Ireland

Some of the Givens family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 50 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Givens migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Givens Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Samuel Givens, who landed in Augusta County, Va in 1739 3

Givens Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Givens, who arrived in Mobile County, Ala in 1850 3
Robert Givens, who arrived in Alabama in 1858 3
D. B. Givens, aged 30, who settled in America from London, in 1892
N. R. Givens, aged 16, who landed in America, in 1892
R. Givens, aged 30, who immigrated to the United States from Dublin, in 1892
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Givens Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Mary Givens, aged 30, who landed in America from Donegal, in 1902
Carl Givens, aged 23, who landed in America, in 1909
Frank Givens, aged 54, who landed in America, in 1912
Bridget Givens, aged 19, who immigrated to the United States from Glenties, Ireland, in 1916
Rose Givens, aged 19, who landed in America from Glenties, Ireland, in 1916
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Givens migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Givens Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century

Virginia T. Givens, aged 47, who immigrated to Kingston, Canada, in 1912

Givens migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Givens Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Givens, English convict who was convicted in Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "Fairlie" on 9th Mary 1852, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Island) 4

Givens migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Givens Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Millie Givens, aged 23, a cook, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "British Queen" in 1883 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Givens (post 1700) +

Robert "Bob" Givens (1918-2017), American animator, character designer, and layout artist, known for his work with Disney, Warner Bros. Cartoons, Hanna-Barbera, and DePatie–Freleng Enterprises
Edward Galen "Ed" Givens Jr. (1930-1967), United States Air Force officer and NASA Astronaut, member of the 'Original 19' group 6
Willard Earl Givens (1886-1971), American educator, executive secretary of the National Education Association (1935 to 1952)
Chris Givens (b. 1989), American NFL football wide receiver
Larry Givens (b. 1960), retired American heavyweight boxer
John Givens (d. 1967), American former basketball player and coach, Kentucky Colonels Head Basketball Coaches (1967)
Jack "Goose" Givens (b. 1956), retired American collegiate and professional basketball player
Wallace Givens (1910-1993), American mathematician, retired professor emeritus at Northwestern University
Reggie Givens (b. 1971), American former NFL and CFL football player, recipient of three consecutive Grey Cup rings
David Givens (b. 1980), American former NFL football player for the New England Patriots 7
... (Another 6 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Givens family +

Arrow Air Flight 1285

Mr. Gary Lynn Givens (1960-1985), American Sergeant from Clarksville, Tennessee, USA who died in the Arrow Air Flight 1285 crash 8

HMS Halsted

Mr. William Layburn Givens (b. 1925), Scottish Royal Navy able seaman from Glasgow, Scotland was stationed aboard the "HMS Halsted" when it was struck by torpedo by Jaguar and Mowe of the Cherbourg coast on 11th June 1944, he did not survive

USS Arizona

Mr. Harold Reuben Givens, American Yeoman Third Class working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he died in the sinking 9

Citations +

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)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 26th September 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/fairlie
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 12th November 2011). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
NASA Astronauts Homepage. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) Edward Givens. Retrieved from http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/givens-eg.html
David Givens. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) David Givens. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Givens
American War Memorials - Flight 1285. (Retrieved 2016, August 24) . Retrieved from http://www.uswarmemorials.org/html/monument_details.php?SiteID=317&MemID=550
Pearl Harbour: USS Arizona Casualties List Pearl Harbour December 7, 1941. (Retrieved 2018, July 31st). Retrieved from http://pearl-harbor.com/arizona/casualtylist.html