Neville One Name study

Initial thoughts

Background

My maternal family name is Neville. I have an interest in medieval literature both fact historical and fiction. I have also had an interest in genealogy for over twenty years. Further still I have recently started studying genealogy with the University of Strathclyde as a post graduate student. These things have all combined to trigger this desire to know more about the name and its origins. A lot has been written but it seems quite disparate. The name Neville is inescapable for anyone reading about medieval history although my knowledge of exactly how these Nevilles were intertwined with royalty is still hazy and one of my first challenges; to broaden my knowledge of that part of Neville history. It appears to be well documented as is the genealogy.

Then how do the also ran Nevilles including my own line fit in. Is there any connection with these noble lines. I suspect not – my instinct is that there is more than one origin to the name.

The current origins from Ancestry are

Neville Name Meaning

Irish and English (of Norman origin): habitational name from Neuville in Calvados or Néville in Seine-Maritime, both so called from Old French neu(f) ‘new’ (Latin novus) + ville ‘settlement’ (see Villa). Irish (Munster): assimilation of the Gaelic name Ó Niadh (see Nee) and sometimes of Ó Cnaimhín (see Nevin).