Tavener History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland
Scotland

When the ancestors of the Tavener family arrived in England following the Norman Conquest of 1066, they brought their name with them. It is a name for a person who kept a tavern or public house. 1

"A family of this name was long seated at Elmham in Norfolk, where Ralph Le Taverner is mentioned in 1272, and only died out in 1682, leaving younger branches to flourish in Essex, Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire. John Taverner, we are told, distinguished himself at Agincourt." 2

Early Origins of the Tavener family

The surname Tavener was first found in Yorkshire where William le Tauerner, Tauernier was listed in the Pipe Rolls of 1175 and 1177. Later, William le Tavenerner was found in Warwickshire in 1268. 3

Up in Scotland, one of the first records found was "Henry le Taverner, a crossbowman, one of the English garrison of Linlithgow Castle in 1305." 4

Early History of the Tavener family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Tavener research. Another 252 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1066, 1305, 1361, 1397, 1402, 1406, 1407, 1417, 1490, 1505, 1545, 1572, 1575, 1584, 1638, 1680, 1690, 1706, 1736, 1739, 1759 and 1768 are included under the topic Early Tavener History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tavener Spelling Variations

Multitudes of spelling variations are a hallmark of Anglo Norman names. Most of these names evolved in the 11th and 12th century, in the time after the Normans introduced their own Norman French language into a country where Old and Middle English had no spelling rules and the languages of the court were French and Latin. To make matters worse, medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, so names frequently appeared differently in the various documents in which they were recorded. The name was spelled Taverner, Tabenor, Tabiner, Tavernor, Taviner, Tavenor and many more.

Early Notables of the Tavener family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was William Taverner (fl. 1397-1407), of Leominster, an English politician, Member of Parliamnet for Leominster in 1397, 1402, 1406 and 1407; William Taverner (fl. 1417), an English politician, Member of the Parliament for Lyme Regis in 1417; and John Taverner (1490-1545), English composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important English composer of his era. Richard Taverner (1505-1575), was...
Another 67 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Tavener Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Tavener family to Ireland

Some of the Tavener family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tavener migration to Australia +

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

Tavener Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Tavener, (b. 1823), aged 19, English convict who was convicted in Bath, Somerset, England for 10 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Emerald Isle" on 25th June 1842, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 5
John B. Tavener, aged 22, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1849 aboard the ship "Harry Lorrequer" 6

Tavener migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Tavener Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

James Tavener, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840

Contemporary Notables of the name Tavener (post 1700) +

John Adam "Jackie" Tavener (1897-1969), nicknamed "Rabbit," and American Major League Baseball player who played from 1921 to 1934
John Tavener (1921-1993), American football player, inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1990
Walter H. Tavener, American Democratic Party politician, Chair of Union County Democratic Party, 1919-20 7
Sir John Tavener (1944-2013), English composer and Professor at Trinity College whose works include: The Whale (1966), The Protecting Veil (1988), Song for Athene (1993) and others
Mark Tavener (1952-2007), British novelist

Citations +

Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. Print.
Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 3 of 3
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 27th March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/emily
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) HARRY LORREQUER 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849HarryLorrequer.htm
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 9) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html