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![Show Contents]() Divas History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
Early Origins of the Divas familyThe surname Divas was first found in Cambridge where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor. After the Battle of Hastings in 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, having prevailed over King Harold, granted most of Britain to his many victorious Barons. It was not uncommon to find a Baron, or a Bishop, with 60 or more Lordships scattered throughout the country. These he gave to his sons, nephews and other junior lines of his family and they became known as under-tenants. They adopted the Norman system of surnames which identified the under-tenant with his holdings so as to distinguish him from the senior stem of the family. After many rebellious wars between his Barons, Duke William, commissioned a census of all England to determine in 1086, settling once and for all, who held which land. He called the census the Domesday Book, 1 indicating that those holders registered would hold the land until the end of time. Hence, conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands of Boselinus de Dive, a knight of archbishop Lanfranc of Christ Church, Canterbury, who was recorded in the Domesday Book census of 1086. He was listed as Dives sur Mer, from Calvados in Normandy. This great family held all the lands of Dives near Caen. Early History of the Divas familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Divas research. Another 75 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1587, 1599, 1603, 1607, 1645, 1647, 1669 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Divas History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Divas Spelling VariationsSpelling variations of this family name include: Dive, Dives, Divas, Diva, Dyve, Dyves, Dyva, Diver and many more. Early Notables of the Divas familyOutstanding amongst the family at this time was Sir Lewis Dyve (1599-1669), an English Member of Parliament and a Royalist adherent during the English Civil War. He was the son of Sir John Dyve of Bromham, Bedfordshire (d. 1607.)
Dyve was captured at the siege of Sherborne, and imprisoned in the Tower of London from 1645 to 1647. He escaped, but was...
Another 61 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Divas Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.  Migration of the Divas family to Ireland
Some of the Divas family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 99 words (7 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Divas familySome of the first settlers of this family name or some of its variants were: Judith Dives, who arrived in Virginia in 1701; William Divers, who arrived in New England in 1725; George Divers, who came to New York in 1758; Charles Divers, who settled in San Francisco in 1852.
- Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
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England
Ireland
