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| Origins Available: |
| | England |
Primer is a name that first reached England following the Norman Conquest in 1066. It is a name for a priest or other ecclesiastical official who read at prime, the first canonical hour. The occupational name Primmer is derived from the Latin primus meaning first, prime. there was also another occupation which was known by the name primmer, and that was the Chief Forester of the King's lands. Since each derivation is equally appropriate Primer is a classic example of an English polygenetic surname, which is a surname that was developed in a number of different locations and adopted by various families independently.
The surname Primer was first found in Devon where they held a family seat from very early times and were granted lands by Duke William of Normandy, their liege Lord, for their distinguished assistance at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 A.D.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Primer research. Another 76 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Primer History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Primer, Primar, Primmer, Brymmer, Brimmer and many more.
More information is included under the topic Early Primer Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Primer name or one of its variants:
Some of the first settlers of this family name were: