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Origins Available: |
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De havilant is one of the thousands of new names that the Norman Conquest brought to England in 1066. The De havilant family lived in Somerset and Guernsey. Their name, however, is a reference to the family's place of residence prior to the Norman Conquest of England in 1066, Haverland in Contantin, Normandy.
The surname De havilant was first found in Somerset and Guernsey where "a member of the ancient Norman family of De Havilland of Guernsey settled in Somersetshire temp. Henry VII., and founded this surname in England." 1 The original Guernsey family settled there before 1176.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our De havilant research. Another 55 words (4 lines of text) covering the year 1170 is included under the topic Early De havilant History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, Anglo-Norman surnames like De havilant are characterized by many spelling variations. Scribes and monks in the Middle Ages spelled names they sounded, so it is common to find several variations that refer to a single person. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages such as Norman French and Latin, even literate people regularly changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name De havilant include Haviland, Havilland, De Haviland and others.
More information is included under the topic Early De havilant Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Faced with the chaos present in England at that time, many English families looked towards the open frontiers of the New World with its opportunities to escape oppression and starvation. People migrated to North America, as well as Australia and Ireland in droves, paying exorbitant rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, but those who did see the shores of North America were welcomed with great opportunity. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America carried the name De havilant, or a variant listed above: Miles Haviland settled in Rhode Island in 1679; Mathew Haviland settled in Barbados in 1680 with his servants; Arthur, Daniel, Francis, Henry, James, John Haviland, all arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860..