| ![Show Contents]() Soyer History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The history of the Soyer family name begins after the Norman Conquest of 1066. They lived in Essex. Their name, however, is a reference to St. Saire, Normandy, the family's place of residence prior to the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. Alternatively, the name could have been a trade name for someone who was "an assayer of metals." 1 And another variation is that it could have been "an Anglo-Norman personal name, as Saher de Quincy, the famous Earl of Winchester." 1 There are at least three other listed origins of the name, but these latter three seem the most probable. Early Origins of the Soyer familyThe surname Soyer was first found in Essex where the family's first listing of the name was found during the reign of Edward II. 1 Omitting the entries as a personal name, we also found: Stephanus filius Seir (1148-1152) and ? filius Saheri (Saieri) c. 1160 in Lincolnshire. Robertus filius Seer was listed in the 12th century in Nottinghamshire and Richard Sayer was listed in the Pipe Rolls of Devon in 1230. Thomas Sare and John Sayer were listed in the Feet of Fines of Essex in 1292. 2 The Thayer variant produced the Pilgrim Fathers and brothers Thomas Thayer (1596-1665) and Richard Thayer (1601-1664) who were born in Thornbury, Devon. The family were originally from Glastonbury, Somerset, the oldest found was John Tahyer, born c. 1450. Early History of the Soyer familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Soyer research. Another 116 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1560, 1602, 1603, 1625, 1631, 1655, 1695, 1705, 1718 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Soyer History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Soyer Spelling VariationsAnglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Sayer, Sayers, Sayres and others. Early Notables of the Soyer familyOutstanding amongst the family at this time was Robert Sayer or Seare (1560-1602), a Benedictine monk, born at Redgrave, Suffolk, the son of John Seare; Sir John Sayer of Bourchers Hall in Essex; and his son, George Sayer (c. 1655-1718), an English courtier and politician, Member of Parliament...
Another 47 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Soyer Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Soyer RankingIn France, the name Soyer is the 1,770th most popular surname with an estimated 3,452 people with that name. 3  Migration of the Soyer family to Ireland
Some of the Soyer family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 61 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
| Soyer migration to the United States | + |
For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Soyer or a variant listed above were:
Soyer Settlers in United States in the 18th Century- Francois Soyer, aged 17, who arrived in Louisiana in 1719 4
| Contemporary Notables of the name Soyer (post 1700) | + |
- Elizabeth Emma Soyer (1813-1842), née Jones, English painter, born in London, wife of Alexis Benoît Soyer
- Alexis Benoît Soyer (1809-1858), French cook, youngest son of a small shopkeeper, born at Meaux-en-Brie on the Marne, France; the Revolution caused him to leave France, and in 1831 he joined a brother in the kitchen of the Duke of Cambridge in London
- Peter Soyer Beagle (b. 1939), American fantasist and author of novels, nonfiction, and screenplays
- Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
- 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)
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Soyer migration to the United States 
England
Ireland
