Gawne Surname, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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The Gawne surname is a Brythonic Celtic name that comes from the personal name Gawen. This name was popular due to the exploits traditionally attributed to Sir Gawaine, a nephew of King Arthur who was a native of the English/ Welsh border area and was famed for his exploits as a Knight of the Round Table. Sir Gawaine was the hero of the battle with the giant Rhyence: 'That Gawain with his olde eurtesie.' Chaucer, The Squire's Tale. Independently, the surname Gawne is native to the Isle of Man, and as a Manx name, it is an occupational surname derived from Mac-an-Gabhain, which means the smith's son.

Gawne Early Origins

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The surname Gawne was first found in Wiltshire, where "the Gawens of Norrington, in the parish of Alvideston, continued in that place four hundred fifty and odd yeares. On the south downe of the farme of Broad Chalke is a little barrow called Gawen's Barrow, which must bee before ecclesiastical lawes were established." The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 list Goselena filius Gawyne in Cambridgeshire and the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list Peter Gowyn and Emma Gawyn.

Gawne Spelling Variations

Although there are not an extremely large number Welsh surnames, there are an inordinately large number of spelling variations of those surnames. This variety of spellings began almost immediately after the acceptance of surnames within Welsh society. As time progressed, these old Brythonic names were eventually were recorded in English. This process was problematic in that many of the highly inflected sounds of the native language of Wales could not be properly captured in English. Some families, however, did decide to modify their own names to indicate a branch loyalty within the family, a religious adherence, or even a patriotic affiliation. The name Gawne has seen various spelling variations: Gawen, Gaven, Gavin and others.

Gawne Early History

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gawne research. Another 161 words (12 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gawne History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gawne Early Notables (pre 1700)

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

The Great Migration

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Gawne Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Edward Gawne, aged 31, a carpenter, arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Edward P Bouverie" in 1873
Emma Gawne, aged 32, arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Edward P Bouverie" in 1873
Lillian J. Gawne, aged 4, arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Edward P Bouverie" in 1873
Westley Gawne, aged 2, arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Edward P Bouverie" in 1873
Mabel Gawne, aged 6 months, arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Edward P Bouverie" in 1873

Contemporary Notables of the name Gawne (post 1700)

Harry D. Gawne, American politician, Candidate for New York State Assembly from Chemung County, 1909; Candidate for New York State Senate 41st District, 1926
Edward Moore Gawne (1802-1871), Speaker of the House of Keys in the Isle of Man
Philip Anderson "Phil" Gawne (b. 1965), British Manx politician

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Citations

^ Lowe, 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)

Other References

Colletta, John P. They Came In Ships. Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1993. Print.
Rowlands, John, John Rowlands and Sheila Rowlands. Welsh Family History: A Guide to Research. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1999. Print. (ISBN 080631620).
Burke, Sir Bernard. Burke's Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry: Including American Families with British Ancestry. (2 Volumes). London: Burke Publishing, 1939. Print.
Hanks, Patricia and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988. Print. (ISBN 0-19-211592-8).
Leeson, Francis L. Dictionary of British Peerages. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1986. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-1121-5).
MacAulay, Thomas Babington. History of England from the Accession of James the Second 4 volumes. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1879. Print.
Bolton, Charles Knowles. Bolton's American Armory. Baltimore: Heraldic Book Company, 1964. Print.
Bowman, George Ernest. The Mayflower Reader A Selection of Articales from The Mayflower Descendent. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing. Print.
Egle, William Henry. Pennsylvania Genealogies Scotch-Irish and German. Harrisburg: L.S. Hart, 1886. Print.
Hinde, Thomas Ed. The Domesday Book England's Heritage Then and Now. Surrey: Colour Library Books, 1995. Print. (ISBN 1-85833-440-3).
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The Gawne Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Gawne Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname.

This page was last modified on 30 June 2016 at 08:37.