Rives History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
France

The surname Rives is occupational in origin and derives from a person that made rivets for armor. The word itself derives from the Old French word "rivet," meaning "small nail" or "bolt." 1

Early Origins of the Rives family

The surname Rives was first found in Poitou, where this family was installed in ancient times.

Many members of this family devoted their lives to the religious service and became bishops of their respective regions. The family branch Rivet sprung André Rivet, famous Calvinist theologian, born in 1573 at Confolens (Charente), dead in Nans in 1749. Antoine outlined and composed the first nine volumes of The Literary History of France (1728-1750), later continued by Dom Clémencet, D. Clément, and then by the French Institute.

He accomplished this large work in the monastery of Saint-Vincent of Mans where his superiors relegated him (1719) as editor of the famous, "Nécrologe de Port-Royal". Antoine Rivet de la Grange was a learned Benedictine.

Early History of the Rives family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Rives research. Another 115 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1572, 1632, 1651, 1696, 1778, 1808 and 1818 are included under the topic Early Rives History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Rives Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Rivest, Rivet, Rive, Rives, Larivest, Larivet, Larive, Larives, Delarive, Delarivest, Delarivet, Riverain, Rivaud, Rivaut, Rivereau, Rivelin, Rivelon and many more.

Early Notables of the Rives family

Another 39 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Rives Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Rives Ranking

In the United States, the name Rives is the 8,025^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2 However, in France, the name Rives is ranked the 2,052^nd most popular surname with an estimated 3,060 people with that name. 3

Rives migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Rives Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Rives, who landed in Virginia in 1663-1664 4
Edward Rives, who arrived in America in 1674

Rives Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

James Rives, who settled in America in 1742

Rives Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Peter Rives, who landed in America in 1809 4
Reuben Rives, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 4
John Rives, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 4

Contemporary Notables of the name Rives (post 1700) +

Hallie Erminie Rives (1874-1956), American best-selling popular novelist
Jack L. Rives (b. 1952), Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of the American Bar Association
Brigadier-General Tom Christopher Rives (1892-1975), American Chief of the Radio & Radar Subdivision, Air Material Command in 1945 5
Donald Earl Rives (b. 1951), former American professional American football player
Zeno John Rives (1874-1939), U.S. Representative from Illinois
Francis Everod Rives (1792-1861), U.S. Representative from Virginia
George Lockhart Rives (1849-1917), served as United States Assistant Secretary of State
Alexander Rives (1806-1885), Virginia lawyer, politician, and federal judge
William Cabell Rives (1793-1868), American lawyer, politician and diplomat
Joey Rives (b. 1963), former American professional tennis player
... (Another 13 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

Dionne, N.-E., Origine Des Familles Canadiennes-Français. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1969. Print.
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2014, March 26) Tom Rives. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Rives/Tom_Christopher/USA.html