Gabrel History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France

Etymology of Gabrel

What does the name Gabrel mean?

The ancient surname of Gabrel is from the Normandy region of France. This surname came from the given name Gavriel, which means God has given me strength.

Early Origins of the Gabrel family

The surname Gabrel was first found in Normandy (French: Normandie), the former Duchy of Normandy, where they held a family seat in the department of Calvados in the region of Caen, where they were a distinguished family of great nobility. The family name was originally spelled Gabriaut. In the same early period, about the 11th and 12th century, they branched to Brittany and Poitou.

Early History of the Gabrel family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gabrel research. Another 65 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1502, 1572, 1698 and 1782 are included under the topic Early Gabrel History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gabrel Spelling Variations

There were a great number of spelling variations in French surnames. One reason for this was the wide variety of cultural influences present in France during the early development of the French language. The many spelling variations of the name include Gabriaut, Gabriau, Gabriault, Gabriel, Gabriele, Gabriell, Gabrielle, Gabrel, Gabrelle, Le Gabriel and many more.

Early Notables of the Gabrel family

More information is included under the topic Early Gabrel Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Gabrel family

In 1643, 109 years after the first landings by Cartier, there were only about 300 people in Quebec, in 1663 there were only 500, 2,000 migrants arrived during the next decade. Early marriage was desperately encouraged amongst the immigrants. Youths of 18 took fourteen-year-old girls for their wives. The fur trade was developed and attracted migrants, both noble and commoner from France. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries. Migration from France to New France or Quebec as it was now more popularly called, continued from France until it fell in 1759. 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. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many distinguished contributions have been made by members of this family name Gabrel. It has been prominent in the arts, religion, politics and culture in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Gabrel were Thomas Gabriell who arrived in Trinity Harbour in Newfoundland in 1675; and settled in Heart's Content in 1681; Andre Gabriel settled in Codroy and Rivers in 1871.