Phares History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France
Ireland
Scotland
England

The Phares surname in Ireland is generally thought to have come from a translation of the Gaelic "fionn," meaning "fair." More often than not, the spelling in use in Ireland is with the "ph" as in Phair or Phayr. 1 Thus the name was originally given to one with fair hair or of a fair disposition and means "son of the fair one"

Early Origins of the Phares family

The surname Phares was first found in Ireland where according to O'Hart, the "family name came into Ireland with the Cromwellian Settlement, or with the Revolution." 2 This name is scattered throughout Ireland and instances of it nowadays are rare. However in its original form, Fionn, it holds an important part in Irish mythology, being the first name of the legendary hero, Fionn MacCumhaill, leader of the mighty warriors the Fianna.

It is generally thought that this Irish family was a branch from the family residing in Devon, England.

Early History of the Phares family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Phares research. Another 22 words (2 lines of text) covering the years 1612, 1619, 1648, 1649, 1650, 1651, 1654, 1662 and 1682 are included under the topic Early Phares History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Phares Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Fair, Faire, Faires, Fayer, Fayers, Fairs, Fare, Phair, Phaire, Phayre, Phares and many more.

Early Notables of the Phares family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Robert Phayre (c.1619-1682) Governor of Cork, and soldier, one of the Regicides of King Charles I of England. He was held at the Tower of London, but after paying a substantial ransom and marrying the Protestant daughter of the Governor of the Tower of London, he was released in 1662. He came into prominence in connection with the outbreak of the second civil war. In February 1648 he held a command as lieutenant-colonel in the south of Ireland, when he was arrested, with three other officers, for refusing to join the royalist...
Another 231 words (16 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Phares Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Phares Ranking

In the United States, the name Phares is the 10,176^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3

Phares migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Phares Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Lydia Phares, who landed in Maryland in 1658 4

Phares Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Phares Jr. settled in Cincinnati in 1825
Julia Phares, who settled in Kansas in 1870

Contemporary Notables of the name Phares (post 1700) +

Greg Donald Phares (b. 1956), American police officer, sheriff of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana
William M. Phares, American politician, Postmaster at Leadsville, Virginia, 1842-47, 1851-55, 1862-83 5
William Forest Phares (b. 1886), American Republican politician, Member of Missouri Republican State Committee, 1914-26; Missouri Republican State Chair, 1924-26, 1948 5
Robert A. Phares, American politician, Mayor of North Platte, Nebraska, 1970 5
Johnson W. Phares, American politician, Postmaster at Leadsville, Virginia, 1855-62 5
Jesse Franklin Phares, American politician, Member of West Virginia State House of Delegates from Randolph County, 1865-66 5
Jesse Phares, American politician, Postmaster at Leadsville, Virginia, 1839-42 5
George Phares, American Democratic Party politician, Chair of Randolph County Democratic Party, 1969-70, 1975 5
Dewey P. Phares, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from West Virginia, 1952 5
Corbet A. Phares, American Republican politician, Candidate for West Virginia State House of Delegates 25th District, 1974 5
... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Phares Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Virtute tutus
Motto Translation: By Virtue Safe

Citations +

MacLysaght, Edward, Supplement to Irish Families. Baltimore: Genealogical Book Company, 1964. Print.
O'Hart, John, Irish Pedigrees 5th Edition in 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0737-4)
"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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, March 16) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html