Show ContentsNeve History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Neve surname is derived from a place called Nevay in Angus.

Early Origins of the Neve family

The surname Neve was first found in Angus (Gaelic: Aonghas), in the territorial origin from Nevay, a former parish now united to Essie. 1

"In 1219 Adam de Neveth was present at the perambulation of the bounds between the lands of the Abbey of Arbroath and the barony of Kinblethmont. Alexander de Neve, a Scots prisoner of war in England, had a safe conduct to return to Scotland in 1422. Thomas Nevay who witnessed the transumpt of a charter in 1450 is doubtless the Thomas Neiff, chaplain in Brechin in 1453." 2

Early History of the Neve family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Neve research. Another 256 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1219, 1453, 1511, 1558, 1579, 1597, 1637, 1647, 1666, 1672, 1792, 1850 and 1870 are included under the topic Early Neve History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Neve Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Nevay, Neave, Neaves, Nevey, Neve, Neevey and others.

Early Notables of the Neve family

Notable among the family at this time was John Nevay (died 1672), a Scottish Covenanter who after the Resortaion was banished by the privy council to Holland.John Nevay (1792-1870) the Scottish poet, was born in Forfar on 28 January 1792, the...
Another 40 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Neve Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Neve migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Neve Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Mary Neve, who arrived in Maryland in 1662 3
Neve Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Godfrid Neve, aged 25, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1753 3
Neve Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • William Neve, who settled in New York with his children in 1822
  • William Neve and child arrived in New York in 1822
  • William Neve, who landed in Charleston, South Carolina in 1829 3
  • Elizabeth Neve, who arrived in New York, NY in 1836 3

Australia Neve migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Neve Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Thomas Neve, aged 43, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1853 aboard the ship "Caucasian" 4

West Indies Neve migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 5
Neve Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Samuel Neve who settled in Barbados in 1682

Contemporary Notables of the name Neve (post 1700) +

  • Loyd E. Neve, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Nebraska, 2008 6
  • John Neve, American politician, U.S. Consular Agent in Wolverhampton, 1884-98 6


The Neve 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: Sola proba quae honestas
Motto Translation: Those things only are good which are honorable.


  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  2. 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)
  3. 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)
  4. South Australian Register Tuesday 26 April 1853. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Caucasian 1853. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/caucasian1853.shtml
  5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  6. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 18) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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