AVERY
The surname Avery is of English origin, with a foundation in the British Isles, particularly England, where it has been recorded in English language documents featuring Christian religious contexts.
Its earliest derivation is from the Old French personal name Aubri or Alberic, which in turn descends from the Germanic elements alb, meaning elf, and ric, meaning power or ruler. Thus the name conveys the sense of an elf-ruler or a person who holds authority among supernatural beings.
Another line of derivation connects the surname to the Old English name Aelfric, composed of elf, the mythical creature, and ric, meaning kingdom, yielding the interpretation elf-kingdom. A further, rarer derivation comes from the female name Albreda, combining alb with red, counsel, to mean elf-counsel.
In addition to these personal-name origins, Avery may function as a topographic surname for someone who dwelt near a bird sanctuary or breeding place, the name deriving from the Old English word aefre, which referred to a boar or wild boar, thereby linking the bearer to nature and wildlife.
The surname first appears in recorded history in the late thirteenth century. The earliest surviving spelling, Geoffrey Aubri, is dated 1273 in the Subsidy Rolls of Cambridgeshire during the reign of King Edward I, who reigned from 1272 to 1307.
Between the thirteenth and seventeenth centuries many variations of the spelling were documented. These include Aubr(a)y, Alfr(e)y, Affery, Avery and Avory. A record of John Aubri appears in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire in 1308.
Later ecclesiastical records give further evidence of the name's use. George Averye was christened on 9 June 1573 at Christchurch, Grayfriars, Newgate, while Anne, daughter of William Avery, was christened on 22 September 1577 at St. Giles, Cripplegate, London.
The family’s heraldic emblem was officially granted in 1579 to the Avery family of Fillongley, Warwickshire. The arms comprise an ermine shield on a pale engrailed azure, bearing three lions' heads couped gold; the crest features a silver lynx couchant bezantee, ducally gorged gold.
In the nineteenth century the surname crossed the Atlantic with at least one noted emigrant. William Avery sailed from Liverpool to New York aboard the vessel Reliance on 6 May 1846, carried as part of a famine emigration wave.
Across the centuries, the surname Avery has therefore illustrated a rich confluence of linguistic roots, topographic associations, heraldic representation, and migratory history within the context of the British Isles and beyond.
Typical given names associated with the Avery surname
Male
- Christopher
- David
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Richard
- Robert
- Stephen
Female
- Catherine
- Elizabeth
- Jacqueline
- Joanne
- Julie
- Karen
- Margaret
- Mary
- Rebecca
- Sarah
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Avery in...
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Morse
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Did you know?
According to a survey carried out by Democracy Club, politicians and candidates with the surname Avery are most likely to say that their favourite biscuit is a Hobnob.
There are approximately 8,868 people named Avery in the UK. That makes it roughly the 1,072nd most common surname in Britain. Around 136 in a million people in Britain are named Avery.
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Avery
- James Avery - American actor (1945 to 2013)
- Steven Avery - American man convicted of murder and previously wrongly convicted of rape
- David Avery - Film, television and theatre actor
- Kate Avery - Long-distance runner
- Gillian Avery - Children's writer and children's literature scholar (1926 to 2016)
- Robert Avery - Canoeist
- Peter Avery - Scholar (1923 to 2008)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.