SQUIRE tribes around the world

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SQUIRE Family History

This very interesting surname is of Norman-French origins. It was introduced into England after the Conquest of 1066 as a "status name". At first it signifed a young man of good birth, who was attendant on a knight, being his shield-bearer. The derivation is from the Old French "escuier", in Middle English this became "squyer", both ultimately from the Roman (Latin) "scutum", meaning a shield. By the 14th Century the name had become anglicized to Squire or Squeer, and the northern forms of Swire, Swier, and Swyer, with the patronymic 'son of' being denoted by a single suffix of 's'. By the 17th Century the word and hence the name had become a term for the local lord of the manor, or any member of the landed gentry...

Who have we missed?

Tell us about any famous SQUIRE (or surname variant) you think we should add here. We will get our genealogists to check them out and add them to the list. Thanks!