| ![Show Contents]() Gair History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
England
Etymology of GairWhat does the name Gair mean? Gair is one of the thousands of new names that the Norman Conquest of 1066 brought to England. It comes from the baptismal name Garrison, which means Gerard. That name was originally derived from the Old German Gerhard, which literally means spear-brave. 1 Baptismal names began to appear as surnames relatively late in the growth of the naming tradition. This is a little surprising, given the popularity of biblical figures in the Christian countries of Europe. Nevertheless, surnames derived from baptismal names grew in popularity during the Middle Ages, and have become one of the foremost sources for surnames. Early Origins of the Gair familyThe surname Gair was first found in the North Riding of Yorkshire where the family originated in Garriston, a small township, in the parish of Haukswell, union of Leyburn, wapentake of Hang-West. 2 3 Early History of the Gair familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gair research. Another 130 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1066 and 1613 are included under the topic Early Gair History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Gair Spelling VariationsAnglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Gear, Gayre, Gyre, Garrison, McGair, Kerrison and many more. Early Notables of the Gair familyMore information is included under the topic Early Gair Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Gair familyBecause of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Gair name or one of its variants: William Lloyd Garrison who was mobbed in the streets of Boston in 1835 because he was an abolitionist(slavery); R.W. Garrison or Garriston who settled in Baltimore, Maryland in 1872.
| Contemporary Notables of the name Gair (post 1700) | + |
- George Frederick Gair CMG QSO (1926-2015), New Zealand politician, Member of the New Zealand Parliament for North Shore (1966-1990), 3rd Mayor of North Shore (1995-1998)
- Joanne "Kiwi Jo" or "Kiwi Joe" Gair (b. 1958), New Zealand-born and raised make-up artist and body painter whose body paintings have been featured in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue
- Thomas Gair Ashton (1855-1933), 1st Baron Ashton of Hyde, British industrialist, philanthropist and Liberal politician
- Gair Roosevelt Allie (1931-2016), American Major League Baseball player for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1954
The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.
Motto: Chace
- Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
- Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
- Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
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