The vast movement of people that followed the
Norman Conquest of
England of 1066 brought the Beever family name to the British Isles. They lived in Berkshire. The family name, however, is of other geographical derivations, referring to any of several locations in
Normandy called
Beauvoir. The name is composed of the Old French roots
beu, which means
fair or
lovely, and voir, which means
to see, and indicates the bearer's residence in "a place with a fine view."
Early Origins of the Beever family
The surname Beever was first found in Berkshire, where they had been granted lands by King William, their liege lord, after the
Norman Conquest in 1066 A.D. for their assistance at the Battle of Hastings.
Early History of the Beever family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Beever research.
Another 197 words (14 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Beever History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Beever Spelling Variations
Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of
spelling variations. When the
Normans became the ruling people of
England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Beaver, Beavor, Beavers, Beavors, Beavoirs, Beevers and many more.
Early Notables of the Beever family (pre 1700)
More information is included under the topic Early Beever Notables in all our
PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Beever family to the New World and Oceana
For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in
England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Beever or a variant listed above were: Matthew Beaver, who arrived in Virginia in 1638; John Beaver, who settled in New
England in 1699; Bridget Beavers, who came to Annapolis Maryland in 1730.
Contemporary Notables of the name Beever (post 1700)
- W. George Beever, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Illinois, 1916 [1]CITATION[CLOSE]
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 29) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html - Julian Beever, English chalk artist, known for his three dimensional works, known as the "Pavement Picasso"