Vaniere History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France

Etymology of Vaniere

What does the name Vaniere mean?

The French surname name Vaniere is derived from the Old French word "vanier," which referred to someone employed to blow the chaff from wheat, a practice known as winnowing.

Early Origins of the Vaniere family

The surname Vaniere was first found in Normandy (French: Normandie), the former Duchy of Normandy, where this distinguished family held a family seat in the seigneurie of Bauviers as members of the aristocracy of that region.

Early History of the Vaniere family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Vaniere research. Another 70 words (5 lines of text) covering the year 1789 is included under the topic Early Vaniere History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Vaniere Spelling Variations

Throughout the course of history most surnames have undergone changes for many reasons. During the early development of the French language, a son and father may not have chosen to spell their name the same way. Many are simple spelling changes by a person who gave his name, phonetically, to a scribe, priest, or recorder. Many names held prefixes or suffixes which became optional as they passed through the centuries, or were adopted by different branches to signify either a political or religious adherence. Hence, we have many spelling variations of this name, Vaniere some of which are Vanier, Vannier, Vanniere, Vanner, Vaner, Vaniere, Le Vanier, Levanier, Le Vannier, Levannier, Le Vanner and many more.

Early Notables of the Vaniere family

More information is included under the topic Early Vaniere Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Vaniere family

France was active as a cultural leader in the early 16th century. One particular area in which they lead was the exploration of the New World. The explorers, like Jacques Cartier in 1534, led the way to North America. Champlain, in 1608, made the first of twenty voyages to France to attract settlers and brought the first migrant in 1617. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec, and the French Acadian presence in the Maritimes had reached 500. The French founded Lower Canada, thus becoming one of the two great founding nations of Canada. The family name Vaniere has made many distinguished contributions in France and New France to the world of science, culture, religion, and education. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Vaniere were Catherine Vanier, who came to Quebec in 1656; Guillaume Vanier, who arrived in Quebec in 1672; Germain Vanier, who arrived in Quebec from Ile-de-France in 1669.