Corneille History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• France
• England

Etymology of Corneille

The name Corneille is derived from the Old French word "corme", which referred to the fruit of the "sorb" or "service" tree. The surname most likely evolved from a nickname originally used for someone who lived near such a tree, or who sold its fruit at the market. 1

Early Origins of the Corneille family

Early History of the Corneille family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Corneille research. Another 68 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1079, 1480, 1584, 1601, 1606, 1609, 1642, 1646, 1664, 1684, 1695 and 1708 are included under the topic Early Corneille History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Corneille Spelling Variations

Changes of spelling have occurred in most surnames. The earliest explanation is that during the early development of the French language, names were not yet fixed in spelling. Usually a person gave his version of his name, phonetically, to a scribe, a priest, or a recorder. This depended on accent, and local accents frequently changed the spelling of a name. Some variables were adopted by different branches of the family name. Hence, there are some spelling variations of the name Corneille, including Cormier, Cormiere, Cormie, Cormey, De Cormie, De Cormey, De Cormier and many more.

Early Notables of the Corneille family

• Pierre Corneille (1606-1684), a French tragedian, often called “the founder of French tragedy"
• Michel Corneille the Elder (c. 1601-1664), a French painter, etcher, and engraver
• Michel Corneille the Younger (1642-1708), a French painter, etcher and engraver
• Jean-Baptiste Corneille (c.1646-1695), a French painter, etcher, and engraver

Corneille Ranking

France, the name Corneille is the 6,178^th most popular surname with an estimated 1,000 - 1,500 people with that name. 2

Migration of the Corneille family

In 1643, 109 years after the first landings by Cartier, there were only about 300 people in Quebec. Migration was slow. The fur trade attracted migrants, both noble and commoner. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the French Acadian presence in the Maritimes had reached 500. The French founded Lower Canada, thus becoming one of the two great founding nations of Canada. The family name Corneille has made many distinguished contributions in France and New France to the world of science, culture, religion, and education. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Corneille were Robert Cormier (1602–1712), a ship’s carpenter born in Poitou, who settled in Acadia in 1650; John Cormie who settled in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1790; a Cormier family settled in Newfoundland in 1850.