Origins Available: French,
Irish
The history of the Devigne family goes back to the Medieval landscape of northwestern France, to the regions known as
Brittany and
Normandy. The name Devigne is derived from the Old French word "vigne," meaning "vine," and as such it is likely that the first bearers of this name owned or worked on a vineyard.
Early Origins of the Devigne family
The surname Devigne was first found in
Brittany where they held a
family seat in the seigneury of Haute Morays.
Early History of the Devigne family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Devigne research.
Another 141 words (10 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Devigne History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Devigne Spelling Variations
Most surnames have experienced slight spelling changes. A son may not chose to spell his name the same way that his father did. Many were errors, many deliberate. During the early development of the French language, a person usually gave his version, phonetically, to a scribe, a priest, or a recorder. Prefixes or suffixes varied. They were optional as they passed through the centuries, or were adopted by different branches to signify either a political or religious adherence. Hence, there a many
spelling variations of the name Devigne, including Lavigne, Levine, Levin, Levigne, Levigny, Laveine, Lavignes, Lavene, Des Vignes, deVigne, Devignes, Devigne, De lavigne and many more.
Early Notables of the Devigne family (pre 1700)
More information is included under the topic Early Devigne Notables in all our
PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Devigne family to the New World and Oceana
Immigration to New France was slow; therefore, early marriage was desperately encouraged amongst the immigrants. The fur trade attracted migrants, both noble and commoner. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the Acadian presence in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island had reached 500. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to
England and were deported to Louisiana. The French founded Lower Canada, thus becoming one of the two great founding nations of Canada. The distinguished family name Devigne has made significant contributions to the culture, arts, sciences and religion of France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Devigne were
Devigne Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
- Jean Devigne, who arrived in Louisiana in 1719 [1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Contemporary Notables of the name Devigne (post 1700)
- Jules Devigne (b. 1877), French racecar driver