Alma STEVENS
1905 - 1988 (83 years)
Stevens
Name Meaning
What's in a Name? Although wars, conquests, and economic conditions have changed boundaries, modified name spellings, and altered languages, a coat of arms MEANS A NAME. A coat of arms was as easily read in earlier times as a name on a mailbox is today. Originally, arms were used to identify a family, group, or clan, and to distinguish friend from foe; THAT IS WHY NO TWO ARE ALIKE! No snobbery was connected with them, but some people like to think so! Colors and designs were chosen to show status, allegiance, personality, or profession; and to reflect traits or traditions associated with the original bearer.
Stevens - The surname STEVENS appears to be patronymical in origin, and is believed to be associated with the English and Germans, meaning, "son of Stephen." Different spellings of the same original surname are a common occurrence. The most prominent variations of Stevens are Steven, Stephens, and Steffan. The Stevens Coat of Arms was drawn by an heraldic artist from information officially recorded in ancient heraldic achieves. Documentation for the Stevens Coat of Arms design can be found in Burke's General Armory. Herarldic artists of old developed their own unique language to describe an individual Coat of Arms. In their language, the Arms, (shield) is as follows "Per chev. az. and ar. in chief two falcons, wings expanded or" when translated the Arms description is "Divided chevronwise blue and silver; on top two gold falcons, wings expanded." Above the shield and helmet is the Crest which is described as "A demi eagle displ. or, charged on the breast with a mullet sa." A translation of the Crest description is "A half eagle displayed gold, charged on the breast with a black five-pointed star." Family mottos are believed to have originated as battle cries in medieval times. A Motto was not recorded with the Stevens Coat of Arms.
STEVENS A detailed history of England commenced from the Germanic invasions during the mid 5th century AD. During the 10th century Britain was united into one Kingdom with all existing Anglo Saxon communities merging after the invasion of William of Normandy in 1066 who later became William 1 of England. The Normans brought with them the feudal system which was a social system of rights and duties based on land tenure. The English surname Stevens and its variants Steven and Stevenson is of kinship origin. Kinship names derived from family. As children grew it was not unusual to refer to them by the name of the parents. We find that the Scandinavian 'sen', the English 'son', the Greek 'pulor', the Finnish 'nen' and the Spanish 'ez' all mean 'son'; the Irish 'O' indicates the name of the grandfather or earlier ancestor. In this case the name simply means 'son of Stephen'. This was a popular personal name during the Middle Ages as it was the name of the first Christian martyr who was stoned to death at Jerusalem three years after the death of Christ. Names were believed to influence a child's destiny, so a custom developed of naming the new born after Saints, Gods or a revered individual. It was believed that this would embody the infant with the characteristics of the namesake, and invoke their protection during times of need in later life. To a lesser extent the same practice is still applicable today. Early references to the surname Stevens or a variant are found in Kirby's Quest for Somerset, in which is contained the Exchequer Lay Subsidy for Edward I-III. In this document both Philip Stevene and William Stevene, of County Somerset are mentioned. More recent records show Anthony Stephenes or Stevens of County Wiltshire was recorded as a student at the University of Oxford in 1600. Samuel Stevens age 25 was sentenced to 7 years imprisonment and transported to Australia aboard the prison ship Ganges in 1797.
BLAZON OF ARMS Per chevron vert and argent two falcons in chief or, jessed and belled of the second. CREST A demi falcon displayed or. Translation The tincture Or depicts gold or yellow and indicates the bearer was generous, alternatively it indicates elevation of the mind. ORIGIN England.
STEVENS The Normans were instrumental in introducing surnames to Scotland during the early 11th century circa 1000 AD. The Scots were reluctant to adopt this custom and the use of surnames in Scotland did not take hold until Malcolm Ceannor (1057-1093) commanded his people to adopt surnames from their territoral possessions. In the charters of Alexander 1 (1106 1124) few surnames in Scotland were recorded. However this began to change during the reign of David (1124 1153) when charters of the period show the gradual development and acceptance of hereditary surnames. From this period names of estates and territories were adopted as surnames. The Scottish surname Stevens, a variant of Steven, is the Scottish spelling of Stephen. This name is of kinship origin. Kinship names derived from family. As children grew it was not unusual to refer to them by the name of the parents. We find that the Scandinavian 'sen', the English 'son', the Greek 'pulor', the Finnish 'nen' and the Spanish 'ez' all mean 'son'; the Irish 'O' indicates the name of the grandfather or earlier ancestor. In this instance, the name denotes 'son of Steven', a personal name itself meaning 'crown'. This name was popular in the Middle Ages due to the devotion to the first Christian martyr who was stoned to death at Jerusalem three years after the death of Christ. It is often assumed that surnames were adopted by the user, in fact few were, as no need existed for the individual to distinguish himself from his peers. Names were used mainly to assist in the ready identification of a person for the purposes of tax payment, church records, transfer of land, military service, and any official documentation. The surname Stevens or its variants is recorded in documents date back to 1472 AD when Alexander Stevyn was tenant of Glenboy in 1472. Thomas Steuen was rentalit in land of Auchinnarne in 1509 and John Steuins was tenant of the bishop of Aberdeen in 1511 and Alexander Stevyn held land in Glasgow in 1549. Ninian Stiving in Kilbarchan, 1659 was noted in records of that year. James Stevens was sentenced to life imprisonment and transported to Australia aboard the prison ship Royal Admiral in 1800. BLAZON OF ARMS Per chevron vert and argent two falcons in chief or, jessed and belled of the second. CREST A demi falcon displayed or. Translation The tincture Or depicts gold or yellow and indicates the bearer was generous, alternatively it indicates elevation of the mind. ORIGIN Scotland |