Show ContentsProvost History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The surname Provost is a ancient French name. It was a name given to a person from Brittany who was a prefect or chief magistrate. 1 Looking back even further, we found the name was originally derived from the Old French word, "prevost", which signified someone of that title. 2

Early Origins of the Provost family

The surname Provost was first found in Brittany (French: Bretagne) where this noble family originated in ancient times.

Lords of Bonneseaux are cited in 1427 and maintained nobility of ancient extraction in 1669. The name was also found in Montreuil in the 18th century with a group of Lords from Bourgogne and a Commissioner General in the Navy. 1

François Prevost, born in 1638, son of Charles and Jeanne, was the Major of the Château Saint-Louis and Governor of Trois-Rivières. He married Geneviève Macard, daughter of Nicolas and Marguerite, in the province of Quebec on 1st August 1679. They remained together in Quebec until François passed away on 5th June 1702. 3

Early History of the Provost family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Provost research. Another 122 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1547, 1580, 1622, 1638, 1665, 1680, 1697, 1702, 1729, 1732, 1741, 1753, 1763, 1830, 1831, 1848 and 1865 are included under the topic Early Provost History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Provost Spelling Variations

The many different spellings of French surnames can be partially explained by the use of local dialects and by the influence of other languages during the early development of the French language. As a result of these linguistic and cultural influences, the name Provost is distinguished by a number of regional variations. The many spelling variations of the name include Prévost, Prévoste, Prévosts, Prévostes, Prévaust, Prévauste, Prévaustes, Prévausts, de Prévost, du Prévost and many more.

Early Notables of the Provost family

Notable amongst this name at this time was

  • François Provost (1638-1702), French-born, career soldier who served in the Carignan-Salières regiment stationed to New France in 1665, Governor of Trois-Rivières and temporary Governor of Montreal

Provost World Ranking

In the United States, the name Provost is the 3,927th most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 4 However, in Canada, the name Provost is ranked the 595th most popular surname with an estimated 8,481 people with that name. 5 And in Quebec, Canada, the name Provost is the 236th popular surname. 6 France ranks Provost as 722nd with 6,759 people. 7


United States Provost migration to the United States +

France finally gave land incentives for 2,000 migrants during the 1700s. Early marriage was encouraged in New France, and youths of 18 took fourteen-year-old girls for their wives. The fur trade was developed and attracted migrants, both noble and commoner from France. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries, leaving French names scattered across the continent. The search for the Northwest passage continued. Migration from France to New France or Quebec, as it was now more popularly called, continued until 1759. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the Acadian presence in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island had reached 500. In the treaty of Utrecht, the Acadians were ceded by France to Britain in 1713. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported. They found refuge in Louisiana. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many of this distinguished family name Provost were prominent in social, cultural, religious and political affairs in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Provost were

Provost Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • David Provost, who landed in New York, NY in 1639 8
  • Johannes Provost, who landed in New York in 1664 8
  • Elias Provost, who arrived in Virginia in 1691 8
  • Jonas Provost, who arrived in South Carolina in 1696 8
Provost Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • A. Provost, who landed in America, in 1904
  • A. S. Provost, who immigrated to the United States, in 1904
  • Arthemise Provost, aged 32, who settled in America from Paris, in 1905
  • Anorens J. Provost, aged 73, who landed in America, in 1907
  • Arthur Provost, aged 14, who immigrated to the United States, in 1908
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Canada Provost migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Provost Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century
  • Mathurin Provost, who landed in Canada in 1646
Provost Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Mr. Augustus Provost U.E. who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1784 9
Provost Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century
  • Antonias Provost, aged 28, who settled in Quebec, Canada, in 1924
  • Axtonias Provost, aged 28, who immigrated to Quebec, Canada, in 1924

Contemporary Notables of the name Provost (post 1700) +

  • Étienne Provost (1785-1850), French Canadian fur trader active in the American Southwest
  • Ruth W. Provost, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Massachusetts State House of Representatives Fifth Barnstable District, 2002 10
  • Paul E. Provost (1915-1998), American Democratic Party politician, Member of New Hampshire State Senate 18th District; Elected 1956 10
  • Lewis Provost (b. 1919), American Republican politician, Member of Connecticut State House of Representatives from New Canaan, 1919 10
  • George W. Provost, American politician, Representative from New York 43rd District, 1948 10
  • Frank Provost, American politician, Mayor of Anaconda, Montana, 1937 10
  • Clara B. Provost, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 1972 10
  • Andrew J. Provost, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Kings County 1st District, 1861-62 10
  • Stephane Provost (1967-2005), French Canadian NHL ice hockey official
  • Guy Provost OC, CQ (1925-2004), French Canadian actor
  • ... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)


  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.
  2. Dionne, N.-E., Origine Des Familles Canadiennes-Français. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1969. Print.
  3. Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print
  4. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  5. "Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
  6. "The first 1,000 family names by rank, Quebec (in French only)" Institut de la statistique du Quebec, https://statistique.quebec.ca/en/document/family-names-in-quebec/tableau/the-first-1000-family-names-by-rank-quebec
  7. http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
  8. 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)
  9. Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
  10. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 9) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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