The ancient Norman culture that was established in England after the Conquest of 1066 produced the name of Gollivar. It was given to a greedy person. It derives from the Old French word goulafre, which means glutton.
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Early Origins of the Gollivar family
The surname Gollivar was first found in Suffolk, where they held lands after the Norman Conquest. Roger Gulafre, Lord of Mesnil Bernard, held property in St. Evroult, Normandy in 1061.
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Early History of the Gollivar family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gollivar research. Another 113 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1130 and 1273 are included under the topic Early Gollivar History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Gollivar Spelling Variations
Multitudes of spelling variations are a hallmark of Anglo Norman names. Most of these names evolved in the 11th and 12th century, in the time after the Normans introduced their own Norman French language into a country where Old and Middle English had no spelling rules and the languages of the court were French and Latin. To make matters worse, medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, so names frequently appeared differently in the various documents in which they were recorded. The name was spelled Gulliver, Gullever, Gullifer, Gulliford, Galliford, Galliver, Gilliver and many more.
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Early Notables of the Gollivar family
More information is included under the topic Early Gollivar Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Migration of the Gollivar family
Because of this political and religious unrest within English society, many people decided to immigrate to the colonies. Families left for Ireland, North America, and Australia in enormous numbers, traveling at high cost in extremely inhospitable conditions. The New World in particular was a desirable destination, but the long voyage caused many to arrive sick and starving. Those who made it, though, were welcomed by opportunities far greater than they had known at home in England. Many of these families went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Gollivar or a variant listed above: Robert and Joan Gullever, who sailed to Virginia in 1620 or 1621; Thomas Gullifer sailed to Barbados in 1635; Anthony Gulliver sailed to Massachusetts in 1666.
England
