This surname BREW is the Anglicized form of the Gaelic O'Brughadha 'descendant of Brughaidh' a byname meaning 'Farmer'. The name also meant 'the son of the Judge'. Early records of the name mention McBROW (without surname) who was recorded in 1408, and McBREWE appears in 1471. The name was written in Elizabethan records as O'Broe, O'Brogue and O'Broo, and the name is of frequent occurence in sixteenth century records relating to Queen's County (Leix) and Kilkenny. In much of the same part of the country the name appears as a Norman surname, de Berewa and de Bruth, as early as the year 1190. Brew is also a Manx surname, originally MacVriw, and according to certain sources, cognate with the Irish MacBrehon. Ireland is one of the earliest sources of the development of patronymic names in northern Europe. Irish Clan or bynames can be traced back to the 4th century B.C. and Mac (son of) and O (grandson or ancestor of) evolved from this base, the original literal meaning of which has been lost due to the absence of written records and linguistic ambivalences which subtly but inexorably became adopted through usage. Genealogists and lexographers accept that the patronymic base does not refer to a location, quite the contrary. The use of the prefix 'Bally' (town of) attaching to the base name, identifying the location. The base root was also adopted by people residing in the demographic area without a common ancestor. These groups called 'Septs' were specially prevalent in Ireland. The first Normans arrived in Ireland in the 12th and 13th centuries to form an alliance with the King of Leinster. Under Elizabeth I in the 16th century, settlers from England established themselves around Dublin, then under English control and Presbyterian Scots emigrated to Ulster, introducing English and Scottish roots. A variant of the name Broy, occurs in County Kildare in the year 1297, when one Geoffrey Broy was outlawed as a robber. It has long been a matter of doubt when the bearing of coats of arms first became hereditary and it was not until the Crusades that Heraldry came into general use. Men went into battle heavily armed and were difficult to recognise. It became the custom for them to adorn their helmets with distinctive crests, and to paint their shields with animals and the like. Coats of arms accompanied the development of surnames, becoming hereditary in the same way. |
