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Devine History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables World Ranking

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Suggested Reading Sources

Devine History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland

Etymology of Devine

What does the name Devine mean?

The Irish name Devine was originally written in a Gaelic form as Ó Daimhin, derived from the word "damh," which refers to "an ox" or "a stag." 1

Early Origins of the Devine family

The surname Devine was first found in County Londonderry (Irish: Doire), a Northern Irish county also known as Derry, in the province of Ulster, where they held a family seat from very ancient times.

Early History of the Devine family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Devine research. Another 198 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1066, 1427 and 1713 are included under the topic Early Devine History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Devine Spelling Variations

Pronunciation, rather than spelling, guided scribes and church officials when recording names during the Middle Ages. This practice often resulted in one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname Devine are preserved in these old documents. The various spellings of the name that were found include Devine, O'Devine, Davin, Devane, Dwane, Duane, Dwain, Dwayne, Dwayn, Devan, Davine, Devyne and many more.

Early Notables of the Devine family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was

O'Devine of Kerry

Devine World Ranking

In the United States, the name Devine is the 1,522^nd most popular surname with an estimated 19,896 people with that name. 2 However, in Australia, the name Devine is ranked the 924^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,260 people with that name. 3 And in the United Kingdom, the name Devine is the 738^th popular surname with an estimated 9,118 people with that name. 4

Devine migration to the United States +

A massive amount of Ireland's native population left the island in the 19th century for North America and Australia in hopes of finding more opportunities and an escape from discrimination and oppression. A great portion of these migrants arrived on the eastern shores of the North American continent. Although they were generally poor and destitute, and, therefore, again discriminated against, these Irish people were heartily welcomed for the hard labor involved in the construction of railroads, canals, roadways, and buildings. Many others were put to work in the newly established factories or agricultural projects that were so essential to the development of what would become two of the wealthiest nations in the world. The Great Potato Famine during the late 1840s initiated the largest wave of Iris immigration. Early North American immigration and passenger lists have revealed a number of people bearing the name Devine or a variant listed above:

Devine Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Mary Devine, who arrived in Virginia in 1652 5
Mary Devine, who landed in Maryland in 1660 5
Francis Devine, who landed in Maryland in 1660 5
Daniel Devine, who arrived in Maryland in 1663 5
Dyman Devine, who landed in Maryland in 1671 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Devine Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Magdalen Devine, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1783 5

Devine Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Bryan Devine, who settled in New York in 1803
Ann Devine, aged 25, who landed in New York, NY in 1803 5
Bryan Devine, aged 28, who landed in New York, NY in 1803 5
Felix Devine who settled in Baltimore Maryland in 1804
Michael Devine, who arrived in New York, NY in 1811 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Devine migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Devine Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Anthony Devine, aged 30, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Edward Reid" in 1833
Biddy Devine, aged 28, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Edward Reid" in 1833
Mary Devine, aged 2, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Edward Reid" in 1833
James Devine, aged 1, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Edward Reid" in 1833
Hugh Devine, aged 62, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Edward Reid" in 1833
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Devine migration to Australia +

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

Devine Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Thomas Devine, English convict who was convicted in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Baring" in April 1815, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mr. James Devine, English convict who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Dromedary" on 11th September 1819, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 7
Miss Mary Devine who was convicted in London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Brothers" on 20th November 1823, arriving in New South Wales, Australia and Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 8
Mr. Thomas Devine, British Convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for life, transported aboard the "Dunvegan Castle" on 13th March 1830, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 9
Mr. John Devine, British convict who was convicted in Southwark, London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "England" on 6th June 1835, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 10
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Devine 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:

Devine Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mary C. Devine, aged 18, a servant, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Berar" in 1875
Mary Devine, aged 21, a servant, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Ionic" in 1884

Contemporary Notables of the name Devine (post 1700) +

Candi Devine (1959-2022), ring name of Candace Maria Rummel, an American professional wrestler
Paul Adrian Devine (1951-2020), American baseball pitcher who played seven seasons in Major League Baseball
Major-General John Matthew Devine (1895-1971), American Commanding General 9th Division (1949-1950) 11
Brigadier-General James Gasper Devine (1895-1972), American Commanding General 4th Anti-Aircraft Command (1945-1946) 12
Daniel John Devine (1924-2002), American football player and coach, inductee into the College Football Hall of Fame
Aubrey A. Devine (1897-1981), American college football player for the University of Iowa, inductee into the College Football Hall of Fame
Dan Devine (1924-2002), American college and NFL football coach
Andrew Vabre "Andy" Devine (1905-1977), American character actor
John Herbert Devine (1940-2023), Australian rules footballer who played with Geelong in the Victorian Football League (1986-1988)
John Herbert Devine (1940-2023), Australian rules footballer who played with Geelong in the Victorian Football League (1986-1988)
... (Another 13 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Devine family +

HMS Repulse

Mr. Edward Devine, British Able Bodied Seaman, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and survived the sinking 13

Sources +

MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
"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
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/baring
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dromedary
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/brothers
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 12th August 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dunvegan-castle
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 28th April 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/england
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2012, January 10) John Devine. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Devine/John_Matthew/USA.html
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2012, January 10) James Devine. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Devine/James_Gasper/USA.html
HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html