Dyar History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland
Scotland

The ancient Anglo-Saxon culture once found in Britain is the soil from which the many generations of the Dyar family have grown. The name Dyar was given to a member of the family who was a deer, where in early times it was used as a term of endearment. The surname Dyar originally derived from the Old English Dyri. The name could also have been derived from the Old English word deag, which meant "dye." As a surname, Dyar was likely an occupational name for a "dyer of cloth." 1 In ancient Latin documents, the trade and surname was listed as "tinctor" and has a French equivalent of Teinturier.

Early Origins of the Dyar family

The surname Dyar was first found in Oxfordshire where one the first records of the family was John le Deyere who was listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. There was quite a few early records of the family in Somerset. Kirby's Quest of Somerset listed: John Dyar; Richard le Dyghar; John le Dyghar, as all having lived there temp. 1 Edward III. Richard le Dyer, of Kiderminster was rector of Fincham, Norfolk in 1333. 2 3

Again in Somerset, another source notes that Henry le Deghar was listed there in 1260. Later the Subsidy Rolls of 1275 listed Robert le Deyare in Worcestershire and later again, Alexander Dyghere was found in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1296. The Subsidy Rolls for Derbyshire noted Henry le Dyer had lands there in 1327. 4

In Scotland early records used the Latin form "tinctor." Henry tinctor was listed in Dumfriesshire, c. 1259 and Roger tinctor held land in Aberdeen in 1332. John Dyer called 'talp,' was admitted burgess of the same town in 1436. 5

Early History of the Dyar family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dyar research. Another 148 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1260, 1273, 1333, 1382, 1543, 1596, 1607, 1611, 1660, 1680, 1682, 1685, 1697, 1699 and 1757 are included under the topic Early Dyar History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dyar Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Dyar family name include Dyer, Dyers, Dyar, Dier, Dyars, Dieres, Dire, Dires and many more.

Early Notables of the Dyar family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Sir Edward Dyer (1543-1607) English poet in the court of Elizabethan I, he was knighted and made chancellor of the Order of the Garter in 1596; William Dyre (died 1685), Englishman who served as the 13th Mayor of New York City (1680 to 1682); John Dyer (1699-1757), a Welsh poet; and Mary Barrett Dyer (c.1611-1660), an English Puritan turned Quaker who was hanged in Boston, Massachusetts for repeatedly defying a law banning Quakers from...
Another 81 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dyar Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dyar Ranking

In the United States, the name Dyar is the 11,714^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 6

Migration of the Dyar family to Ireland

Some of the Dyar family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dyar migration to the United States +

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Dyar surname or a spelling variation of the name include :

Dyar Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Dyar, who landed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1635 7
Tho Dyar, who arrived in Virginia in 1652 7

Contemporary Notables of the name Dyar (post 1700) +

Jonathan Pressley Dyar (1845-1923), American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Georgia, 1908, 1912 8
Jonathan Paul Dyar (1886-1951), American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Georgia, 1940 8
F. S. Dyar, American politician, Mayor of Salina, Kansas, 1921-23 8
Clifford Henry Dyar Sr. (1882-1957), American Republican politician, Chair of Cobb County Republican Party 8

The Dyar Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Terrere nolo, timere nescio
Motto Translation: I wish not to intimidate, and know not how to fear.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html