Show ContentsAhr History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The ancient Scottish name Ahr was first used by the Strathclyde-Briton people of the Scottish/English Borderlands. The original bearer of the name lived in the city of Ayr in South-Western Scotland.

Early Origins of the Ahr family

The surname Ahr was first found in Ayrshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Inbhir Àir), formerly a county in the southwestern Strathclyde region of Scotland, that today makes up the Council Areas of South, East, and North Ayrshire, where the family has held a family seat from ancient times. One of the first on record was Reginald Ayr, who was Clerk of Ayr in 1287 and Albinus Ayr had a charter of lands from King Robert the Bruce in 1315.

Early History of the Ahr family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ahr research. Another 67 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1296, 1522, 1567, 1638 and 1712 are included under the topic Early Ahr History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ahr Spelling Variations

Spelling and translation were hardly exact sciences in Medieval Scotland. Sound, rather than any set of rules, was the basis for spellings, so one name was often spelled different ways even within a single document. Spelling variations are thus an extremely common occurrence in Medieval Scottish names. Ahr has been spelled Ayer, Air, Ayre, Ayers and others.

Early Notables of the Ahr family

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

Ireland Migration of the Ahr family to Ireland

Some of the Ahr family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Ahr migration to the United States +

Such hard times forced many to leave their homeland in search of opportunity across the Atlantic. Many of these families settled along the east coast of North America in communities that would become the backbones of the young nations of the United States and Canada. The ancestors of many of these families have rediscovered their roots in the 20th century through the establishment of Clan societies and other patriotic Scottish organizations. Among them:

Ahr Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Johann Nicol Ahr, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1774 1
Ahr Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Gottlieb Ahr, who arrived in America in 1847 1


  1. 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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