IVORY
Ivory is a surname of English provenance, first recorded in the British Isles and particularly in England. The name appears in the 11th‑century Domesday Book under forms such as de Ivri and de Iueri, indicating that the family was established in England before the Norman Conquest of 1066. Early references also situate the name in Oxfordshire, where a John de Ivery obtained the manor of Ambrosden in 1077 during the reign of William the Conqueror.
The surname has been linked to two distinct etymological traditions. One tradition traces it to a Norman‑French locational origin, deriving from the village of Ivry‑la‑Bataille in Eure, Normandy. The place name is believed to be formed from the Gallo‑Roman personal name Eburius, itself a derivative of the Latin root ebur meaning ivory, augmented by the suffix -acum, indicating a settlement. Under this theory the family “de Ivery” is thought to descend from Rodolph, the half‑brother of Richard the First, Duke of Normandy, a man reputed to have been rewarded with the castle of Ivery after slaying a boar in the Duke’s company.
The second tradition holds that Ivory originates from the medieval personal name Ivory, a diminutive of the Old Norse Ivor, itself a compound of iw (yew) and the noun for bow. This hypothesis is supported by medieval records such as a 1270 mention of Ivory Malet, a 1332 entry for Thomas, son of Ivorie in Cumbria, and a 1364 reference to William Ivory in the Calendar of Letter Books of London. Heraldic evidence for the family includes a silver shield with a green bend between three red mullets and a crest featuring a red lion that holds a silver sword in one paw and a gold fleur‑de‑lis in the other.
Another explanation, noted by Anglo‑Saxon scholars, asserts that Ivory derives directly from the Old English personal name Ivar, meaning bowman or archer, reflecting a martial heritage. This usage would have been popularised in the medieval period as a baptismal name in honour of successful military leaders. It explains the surname’s early presence in Norfolk and in the Shetland Islands, as well as its later proliferation across the United Kingdom and abroad.
The claim that the appearance of the surname was influenced by the material ivory, the hard creamy‑white substance found in elephant tusks, has no direct historical basis. The connection appears only in later English usage and is not tied to the original formation of the name. Rather, the surname reflects a personal characteristic—such as a pale complexion—or an occupational association, as it could have been adopted by carvers or merchants dealing with ivory goods.
Today the name remains comparatively rare, chiefly found in English‑speaking countries such as England, the United States, and Australia. In the United States it can occur among the African‑American community, where it was sometimes adopted by freed slaves during or after emancipation, either from the surnames of former owners or by deliberate choice. The name’s variations across centuries demonstrate the linguistic and cultural changes that shaped English surnames, yet the core form Ivory persists as a distinct identity with deep historical roots in the British Isles.
Typical given names associated with the Ivory surname
Male
- Andrew
- Brian
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Stephen
- William
Female
- Caroline
- Christine
- Elizabeth
- Jacqueline
- Jean
- Lisa
- Margaret
- Nicola
- Patricia
- Sara
- 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 Ivory in...
Braille
⠊⠧⠕⠗⠽
Morse
.....----.-.-.--
Semaphore
There are approximately 1,406 people named Ivory in the UK. That makes it roughly the 5,662nd most common surname in Britain. Around 22 in a million people in Britain are named Ivory.
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Ivory
- James Ivory - Scottish mathematician (1765 to 1842)
- George Ivory - Football player (1910 to 1)
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.