Voter History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France

The name Voter is from the Languedoc region of southern France, it came from the Old French personal name, Gauldheri, which means army ruler. This name was adopted by a person who held a commanding position in a medieval French army.

Early Origins of the Voter family

The surname Voter was first found in Languedoc, where this illustrious family held a family seat with lands and manor. The Gauthier of Savignac family was granted the title of the Lords of Doumairène and in the late 11th century, they contributed to the foundation of Villefranche.

Descending from the original line of Rouergue, the members of this illustrious family branched to Quercy in 1454 where Jean Gauthier was granted the right to be the Co-Lord of Savignac and Cabanes. As a result of the Gauthiers' involvement in their community, this eminent family received their letters patent confirming their noble status on June 2, 1669.

Many branches of the family formed with different spellings due to the cultural and linguistic variations throughout France over the centuries. The Gaultier of Girenton family were the Lords of Châteauneuf of Rouge, Lirac, Le Poët, Costebrune, Lauriol and the Marquis of Châteauneuf in 1723.

Continuing to branch under names of spellings, the Gautier family provided the Lords of Grambois, Mille and Rustrel, a Councillor of Marseille in 1568 and a Secretary to the King in 1624. As well, this branch provided the Lords of Aiguines, Canjuers, Clumans, barons of Senez and three Knights of Malta from 1643 to 1717.

Jean Gauthier, born in 1645, son of Mathurin and Catherine, was a French edge-tool maker that travelled from France to Canada in the 17th century. After arriving in the province of Quebec he married Angélique Lefebvre, daughter of Louis and Suzanne, on 21st January 1675. 1

Early History of the Voter family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Voter research. Another 168 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1642, 1700, 1714, 1723, 1746, 1772, 1778 and 1788 are included under the topic Early Voter History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Voter Spelling Variations

French surnames were subject to numerous alterations in spelling because of the various cultural groups that inhabited specific regions. Eventually, each region possessed its own local dialect of the French language. The early development of the French language, however, was also influenced by other languages. For example, Old French was infused with Germanic words and sounds when barbarian tribes invaded and settled in France after the fall of the Roman Empire. Middle French also borrowed heavily from the Italian language during the Renaissance. As a result of these linguistic and cultural influences, the name Voter is distinguished by a number of regional variations. The many spelling variations of the name include Gauthier, Gauthié, Gauthyer, Gauthyé, Gauthiait, Gauthiai, Gauthiaie, Gauthiay, Gauthiez, Gothier, Gothié, Gothyé, Gothyer, Gothiait, Gothiai, Gothiaie, Gothiay, Gothiez, Gauthyait, Gauthyai, Gauthyaie, Gauthyay, Gauthyez, Gautier, Gauithier, Gautiez, Gautiait, Gautiaie, Gautiaies, Gautiais, Gautiai, Gautyer, Gautyez, Gautyait, Gautyaie, Gautyaies, Gautyaie, Gautyais, Gautherii and many more.

Early Notables of the Voter family

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

Migration of the Voter family

By 1643 there were only about 300 people in Quebec. Since immigration was slow, early marriage was desperately encouraged amongst the immigrants. The fur trade attracted migrants, both noble and commoner. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the Acadian presence in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island had reached 500. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported to Louisiana. The French founded Lower Canada, thus becoming one of the two great founding nations of Canada. The distinguished family name Voter has made significant contributions to the culture, arts, sciences and religion of France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Voter were Joseph Gauthier, aged 32; settled in New York in 1821; Charles Gautier settled in New York in 1838; J.J. Gautier aged 32; settled in New Orleans in 1823.

Citations +

Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print