Desilva History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Portugal
Spain

Early Origins of the Desilva family

The surname Desilva was first found in the town of Silva in the Portuguese province of Valenca do Minho. The name of the town is derived from the Portuguese word 'silva,' which means 'forest,' and indicating that the area was once heavily forested.

Early History of the Desilva family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Desilva research. Another 36 words (3 lines of text) covering the years 1647, 1673, 1691, 1694, 1714, 1717, 1720, 1721, 1730, 1731, 1733, 1756, 1774, 1778, 1799 and 1835 are included under the topic Early Desilva History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Desilva Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Da Silva, De Silva, Silva, Silveira and others.

Early Notables of the Desilva family

Prominent members of the family include Pedro da Silva (c.1647-1717), born in Lisbon and settling in New France prior to 1673, he was the first post courier in New France; a Canadian postage stamp honoring him was released in June 2003; and António Diniz da Cruz e Silva (1731-1799), Portuguese heroic-comic poet, born in Brazil.Manuel Pereira da Silva (1694-1733) was a priest and friar of the Order of Christ, master of arts, doctor of canons and professor of the same faculty at the University of Coimbra, etc. He was born in Lisbon on April 6, 1691, where he also died prematurely...
Another 403 words (29 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Desilva Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Desilva Ranking

In the United States, the name Desilva is the 6,088^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 1 However, in Australia, the name Desilva is ranked the 746^th most popular surname with an estimated 5,216 people with that name. 2

Desilva migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Desilva Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

John Joseph DeSilva, who arrived in New York in 1792 3

Desilva Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Baltasar DeSilva, who arrived in America in 1835 3
Francisco DeSilva, who landed in New Spain in 1838 3
Miguel DeSilva, who landed in Guatemala in 1838 3
Rosa DeSilva, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 3
M R DeSilva, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1851 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Desilva Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Felicia Desilva, aged 19, who landed in America from Benevento, Benevento, Italy, in 1906
Manuel deSilva, aged 21, who landed in America, in 1906
Carmine DeSilva, aged 3, who landed in America from Avellino, Italy, in 1907
Manuel DeSilva, aged 22, who immigrated to the United States from Val D'Ozenda, Portugal, in 1910
Joan C deSilva, aged 33, who landed in America from Lisbon, Portugal, in 1914
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Desilva migration to Australia +

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

Desilva Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Anthony DeSilva, British convict who was convicted in India for 5 years, transported aboard the ship "Eliza" in 1813, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 4
Mr. Manual DeSilva, (b. 1771), aged 44, English seaman who was convicted in Chester, Cheshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Fanny" on 25th August 1815, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Desilva (post 1700) +

Norman deSilva, former American NCAA basketball player and Assistant Coach
John Reed DeSilva (b. 1967), American former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball
Sir George Desmond Lorenz de Silva PC QC KStJ (b. 1939), British lawyer and former United Nations Chief War Crimes Prosecutor in Sierra Leone
Luigi deSilva (b. 1953), Italian professional footballer
Walter Maria deSilva (b. 1951), Italian car designer
Diego de Silva y Velasquez (1599-1660), Spanish painter
Dolores DeSilva Beati, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Massachusetts, 1980 6

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
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)
https://convictrecords.com.au/convicts/de-silva/anthony/139038
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 28th September 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/fairlie
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 27) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html