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Guild of One-Name Studies

One-name studies, Genealogy

Is your surname here?

    • 2,261 members
    • 2,161 studies
    • 7,654 surnames

Retained profile for the former
Isard One-Name Study

This study is no longer registered with the Guild, but this profile page has been retained at the member's request. Please note that neither officers nor members of the Guild are able to answer any questions about this study.

About the study

I started tracing my family tree in 1989 after finding some birth and marriage certificates. As I have always been interested in history it intrigued me to find out where I came from.
I initaially began my research to find out about my branch of the family. Since then I have branched out to include anyone with the name of Isard. There are two basic families; one from Sussex, which is my branch, and another from Kent. To date I have found no connections between them.

Variant names

My main study is on the name of ISARD, other variants include IZARD and IZZARD

Name origin

I have often been asked 'where the name of Isard comes from?' The straight answer is I do not Know. Sarah Louise Carberry, my grandmother, always said it came from France and she may be right. There are many Isards in France particularly near the French/Swiss border. It is possible that they were persecuted as Huguenot in France. They then fled to England.

Historical occurrences of the name

The Izard Antelope is the most famous inhabitant of the Pyr�neese and is used as a symbol of National Parks

IZZARD ANTELOPE
This animal is the emblem of the Pyrenees and is used as a symbol to indicate the National Park boundaries (the signs represent a red Isard's head on a white background). A relative of the Chamois, it is nevertheless a Pyrenean species with specific characteristics. The Isard population is protected and the object of a census and studies : today there are over 5000 individuals when there were only 1300 left in 1967. They live in herds of up to 100 individuals. Do make the most of your stay in the Pyrenees to observe them. They like altitude and steep slopes so you'll have to look upward. Don't forget your binoculars as they are wild animals and you will not be able to get close to them.

The Pyrenean Chamois, (French: izard or isard, Spanish ebeco or gamuza, Aragonese: sarrio or chizardo, Catalan: isard ) Rupicapra pyrenaica pyrenaica is a Goat Antelope that lives in the Pyraneese, Cantabrian Mountains. and Apennine Mountains. It is one of the two species of the genus Rupicapra, the other being the Chamois Rupicapra rupicapra. It is in the Caprinae subfamily of bovids, along with sheep and goats.
Up to 80cm tall, their summer coat is a ruddy brown; in winter it is black/brown with darker patches around the eyes. Both males and females have backward-hooked horns up to 20cm in length. They browse on grass, lichens and buds of trees. Sure-footed and agile, they are found anywhere up to 3000m.
Hunted almost to extinction in the 1940's the population has since recovered and in 2002 was estimated to be in the region of 5,000.

 

SOME FAMOUS IS/IZ/IZZARD

 

EDDIE IZZARD
Eddie Izzard has been hailed as one of the greatest stand up comedian of his generation. He was born in 1962 and his ancestors originate from Rotherfield in Sussex

 

RALPH DELANCEY IZARD
Ralph was a United States officer who became a hero for his actions at Tripoli, during the Barbery Wars. The destroyer USS Izard (DD-589) was named after him.

 

GEORGE IZARD
George was a General in the United States Army during the war of 1812 and a Governor of the Arkansaw Territory

 

RALPH IZARD 1742 - 1804
American diplomat and legislator, born. near Charleston, South Carolina. After an education in England, he returned (1764) to South Carolina but in 1771 again went to London. Because of his sympathy with the colonial cause, Izard moved (1776) to Paris. Appointed (1777) commissioner to Tuscany by the Continental Congress, he was not received by that government, but he felt that, as an American diplomat, he should take part in American negotiations with France and thus won the enmity of Benjamin Franklin. Izard's connection with the De Lanceys, New York Loyalists, led to accusations that he was a Tory; however, his sincere devotion to the patriot cause was demonstrated, and after his return (1779) to America he served (1782–84) in the Continental Congress. A Federalist, he strongly supported the Constitution and was (1789–95) Senator from South Carolina.

Name frequency

In the 1881 Census there are:
119 ISARD
251 IZARD
895 IZZARD

Distribution of the name

The main distribution of the name ISARD is in Sussex and Kent.

Data

I have extracted all births, marriages and deaths from the General Record Office, a total of 1282. There are 38 from the Scottish General Records. There are also 146 Probate records dating from 1858. In addition I have hundreds of Census entries and a similar amount of entries from parish records.

General Search Results

Occurrences of the surname Isard in the Guild Indexes
(Click on the number to view the search results in each index. Indexes marked by * are only accessible by logged in Guild members.)
  • Global Marriages (public)  269
  • Global Marriages (members)* 271
  • Modern Newspaper Index  1
  • Probate Index* 13
  • Datastores  2093
  • References to the name Isard in the Guild Journal  22

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You may find our other Guild websites of interest:

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