Laval History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France
Scotland

The proud French name Laval was formed in Brittany (French: Bretagne) when the family resided in a valley. The name Laval is derived from the French word "vallée," which means "valley."

Early Origins of the Laval family

The surname Laval was first found in Brittany, where they held a family seat in the honor of the seigneurie of la Burie.

By the 14th century they had also acquired estates in Brittany at des Fossés, St-Jouan, and du Val. They also held Montrayer, on the Island of Martinique. The Pimodan branch of the family were elevated to the nobility as the Marquis de Pimodan. They also acquired possessions near the border of Flanders, Normandy, and in the Franche-Comté to the south. By 1512 they held a seigneurie at Chenillon in Lorraine. Louise LaVallière was a favourite of Louis XIV, with whom she had four legitimate children.

Pierre Lavallee, born in 1645, son of Pierre and Madeleine, travelled from France to Canada in the 17th century. After arriving in Quebec he married Marie-Thérèse Leblanc, daughter of Leonard and Marie, on 12th January 1665. 1

Early History of the Laval family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Laval research. The years 1385, 1404, 1414, 1620, 1644, 1661, 1664, 1665, 1667, 1673, 1682 and 1710 are included under the topic Early Laval History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Laval Spelling Variations

French surnames were subject to numerous alterations in spelling because of the various cultural groups that inhabited specific regions. Eventually, each region possessed its own local dialect of the French language. The early development of the French language, however, was also influenced by other languages. For example, Old French was infused with Germanic words and sounds when barbarian tribes invaded and settled in France after the fall of the Roman Empire. Middle French also borrowed heavily from the Italian language during the Renaissance. As a result of these linguistic and cultural influences, the name Laval is distinguished by a number of regional variations. The many spelling variations of the name include Lavalle, Lavallée, Lavallee, La Vallee, Levalle, Leval, Lavallière, Lavallier, Levallier, Lavallois, Levallois, Lavallet, Levallet, Lavalet, Levalet, Lavaley, Levaley, Lavalley, Levalley, Lavally, Levally, Lavallière, de Vallée, de Vallee and many more.

Early Notables of the Laval family

Notable amongst this name at this time was

Guy XIII de Laval, (1385-1414), seigneur of Laval and of Kergorlay, inherited the Laval title through his marriage on 22 January 1404 to Anne de Laval, As daughter and sole heir to Guy XII de Laval, A...
Thomas Delavall (Delaval or DeLavall) (1620-1682), an English-born, American settler and businessman, Mayor of New York City (1664, 1665 and 1673)

Laval Ranking

In France, the name Laval is the 540^th most popular surname with an estimated 8,552 people with that name. 2

Laval migration to the United States +

By 1643 there were only about 300 people in Quebec. Since immigration was slow, 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 Laval 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 Laval were

Laval Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Pierre Laval, who landed in Louisiana in 1718 3

Laval Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Latta Laval, aged 22, who arrived in New York, NY in 1847 3
E Laval, who landed in San Francisca, California in 1850 3

Laval migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Laval Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century

Sieur De LaVal, who arrived in Montreal in 1653
Jacques Laval, who arrived in Montreal in 1653
Mr. Jacques Laval, French settler travelling to Canada to work for Jeanne Mance and Sister Judith Moreau arriving on 21st June 1659 4

Contemporary Notables of the name Laval (post 1700) +

Anne Gilbert de Laval, French Divisional General during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars from 1789 to 1815 5
Pierre Laval (1883-1945), French politician

Citations +

Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
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)
Debien, Gabriel. Liste Des Engagés Pour Le Canada Au XVIIe Siècle. Vol. 6, Laval University, 1952. (Retreived 24th May 2018). Retrieved from https://lebloguedeguyperron.wordpress.com/2016/06/30/130-liste-des-contrats-dengagement-pour-la-nouvelle-france-releves-a-la-rochelle-entre-1634-et-1679/
Generals Who Served in the French Army during the Period 1789-1815. (Retrieved 2015, March 30) Anne Laval. Retrieved from http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/c_frenchgenerals.html