Harvey History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms 

Origins Available: 
  England 
  France 
  Ireland 


The ancestors of the Harvey family migrated to England following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The surname Harvey is based on the Breton personal name Aeruiu or Haerviu. It is composed of the elements haer, which means battle or carnage, and vy, which means worthy. The name was commonly introduced to England in its Gallic form Hervé.1

"This surname is derived from the name of an ancestor. 'the son of Harvey.' This great personal name had not become so rare in the 12th and 13th centuries that it could escape surnominal honours. On the contrary, it is still found as a fairly familiar personal name up to the beginning of the 14th century. " 2

Hervey or Hervaeus (d. 1131), was "bishop successively of Bangor and Ely, of Breton race, was a royal clerk, high in favour with William Rufus and confessor to Henry I. " 3

Early Origins of the Harvey family

The surname Harvey was first found in the Domesday Book of 1086 where the Latin form of the name, Herveus, was first used. Herueu de berruarius was also listed in Suffolk at that time. 4

Herueide Caster was recorded in Lincolnshire 1157-1163. Later in Suffolk, Willelmus filius Hervici was listed in the Feet of Fines of 1242 and William Hervi, Herevi was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls of 1196. William Hervy was found in the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1232 and later, Richard Herfu was found in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1327. 1

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed early spellings of the name as both a personal name and a surname: Harvey Dunnyng and Warin Hervi in Cambridgeshire; Robert filius Hervei in Lincolnshire; and Herveus le Gos, in Lincolnshire. 2

"As a family designation it appears in England in the XII. cent. Osbert de Hervey is styled, in the register of St. Edmundsbury, the son of Hervey. From him according to the Peerage sprang the Herveys, ennobled in England and Ireland, and also (in all probability, from the resemblance of their arms) the De Hervi's and Hervies of Aberdeenshire and other parts of Scotland." 5

Distribution of the surname throughout Britain is most interesting. "Well distributed over England south of a line drawn from Hull to Chester. North of that line its frequency abruptly ceases. It is best represented in Essex, Hants, and Kent, and then in Corwall, Devon, Staffordshire, Notts, Norfolk, and Suffolk. Its preference for the coast counties, especially those in the south - east of England from Kent to Norfolk, is to be remarked." 6

Early History of the Harvey family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Harvey research. Another 155 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1200, 1540, 1578, 1586, 1601, 1611, 1616, 1624, 1629, 1642, 1657, 1660, 1661, 1673, 1679, 1680 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Harvey History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Harvey Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years the English language had no fixed system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations occurred commonly in Anglo Norman surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Harvey were recorded, including Harvey, Hervey, Hervie, Harvie and others.

Early Notables of the Harvey family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

Harvey World Ranking

In the United States, the name Harvey is the 225th most popular surname with an estimated 116,889 people with that name. 7 However, in Canada, the name Harvey is ranked the 121st most popular surname with an estimated 25,255 people with that name. 8 And in Quebec, Canada, the name Harvey is the 128th popular surname. 9 Newfoundland, Canada ranks Harvey as 184th with 221 people. 10 Australia ranks Harvey as 93rd with 26,522 people. 11 New Zealand ranks Harvey as 97th with 4,068 people. 12 The United Kingdom ranks Harvey as 96th with 49,561 people. 13

Migration of the Harvey family to Ireland

Some of the Harvey family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 107 words (8 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Harvey migration to the United States +

The unstable environment in England at this time caused numerous families to board ships and leave in search of opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad in places like Ireland, Australia, and particularly the New World. The voyage was extremely difficult, however, and only taken at great expense. The cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels caused many to arrive diseased and starving, not to mention destitute from the enormous cost. Still opportunity in the emerging nations of Canada and the United States was far greater than at home and many went on to make important contributions to the cultures of their adopted countries. An examination of many early immigration records reveals that people bearing the name Harvey arrived in North America very early:

Harvey Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
Harvey Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
Harvey Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
Harvey Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Harvey migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Harvey Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
Harvey Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
Harvey Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century

Harvey migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Harvey Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Harvey migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Harvey Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Harvey migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 23
Harvey Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Harvey (post 1700) +


Suggested Readings for the name Harvey +
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