Reposting this as we have had alot of new members since I last posted this. It is in our files area. I had this surname professionally researched however that does not mean it is 100% accurate. However, for the time being this is all I have been able to obtain and I did pay for it and not through the net but a company locally based.

 

My cousin in England who is a member of the One Name Studies Guild is convinced the surname is not Hugenot. He has spent years researching the surname. I have not been able to find anything to support that either. However,that does not mean he is right.

 

Renee

 

 

Cuzner is a name whose history begins in 1066 with the Norman Conquest of England. This Norman name was used for a person who was related to someone of note in the area. Further research showed the name was derived from the Old French "cusin" and the Old English "cousin," both meaning "relative." The chronicles of England from early records the the surname Cuzner was of Norman origin. The history of this name is interwoven into the colour fabric of the history of Britain.

Careful research by professional analysts using such ancient manuscripts as the Doomsday Book (compiled in 1086 by William The Conquerer), the Ragman Rolls,the Wace poem,The Honor Roll of the Battel Abbey, The Curia Regis, Pipe Rolls, the Falaise Roll, tax records,baptismals,family genealogies and local parish and church records, determined that the name Cuzner was first found in Yorkshire and in the southern counties of England, where the Cuzner family was seated after the Norman conquest in 1066.

Many alternate spellings of the name were found. They were typically linked to a common root, usually one of the Norman nobles of the Battle of Hastings. Your name, Cuzner, occurred in many references, and from time to time, the surname included the spellings of

Cousin,Cousins,Cozens,Cossins,Couzins,Cossens,Cosin,Cosyns and many more. Scribes recorded and spelled the name as it sounded. it was not unlikely that a person would be born with one spelling, married with another, and buried with a headstone which showed another. Sometimes a preferences for different spelling variations were due to a division of the family , or , had religious or patriotic resons.

The ancestors of the family name Cuzner are believed to be descended originally from the Norman race. the Normans were commonly believed to be of French origin but, more accurately of Viking origin. The Vikings, uner their Jarl, Thorfinn Roll, invaded France in about 911 A.D. After Rollo laid seige to Paris, the French king, Charles the Simple, finally conceded defeat, granting Northern France to Rollo. Rollo became the first duke of Normandy, and Duke William, who invaded and defeated England in 1066. was in fact descended from Rollo, the first Duke of Normandy.

Duke William took a census of most of England in 1086, and recorded
it in the Doomsday Book. A family name capable of being traced back to this document or to Hastings, was a mark of honour for most families during the Middle Ages and event to this day.

The surname Cuzner emerged as a notable English family name in the country of Essex and other southern counties of England. The family name Cousins flourished in the centuries following the Conquest of 1066,mainly in the the counties in the south of England as well as Yorkshire. There are several alternate spellings of the name Cousins but they are believed to be of common origin. Some examples are: Cousens,Couzens,Cossins,Cosin and Cosyn. In Middle English cosin means a close relative or kinsmen. The 'S' at the end of Cousins signifies "son of."  It is recorded that Edmund Cosin was the Vice
Chancellor of Cambridge  University around 1558. Of note amongst the family at the time was Edmund Cosin, Vice chancellor of Cambridge University.

The surname Cuzner contributed much to local politics and in the affairs of England and Scotland.During the 12th century many of these Norman families moved north to Scotland , following Earl David of Huntingdon who would become the King of Scotland. Later, in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, England and Scotland were ravaged by religious and political conflict. The Monarchy, the Church and parliament fought for supremacy. the unrest caused many to think of distant lands.

Settlers in Ireland became known as the "Adventurers for land in Ireland" They "undertook" to keep the Protestant faith,and were granted lands previously owned by the Irish. In Ireland, this distinguished family settled in counties Limerick,Cork , and Wexford, where the name was spelt Cussen.
The news and rumours of opportunities in the New World spread like wildfire.

Many sailed aboard the fleet of sailing ships known as the "White Sails".
In North America, immigrants who shared teh family name Cuzner, or one of its spelling variations included John Cosins who settled in Maryland in 1683;Richard Cousin settled in Grenada in 1774;Edward Cousins settled in Maryland in 1774;George Cousins settled in Massachusetts in 1635; James Cousins settled in Virginia in 1670;Jo Cousins settled in Georgia in 1735;John Cousins settled in Maine in 1626; and some of the family who settled in Sherborn, Massachusetts around 1665. Other members of the family name settled in Yarmouth, Massachusetts. The head of the family was Moses Cousins, who claimed descent from the great John Cousins, Bishop of Durham,England who was originally from Norwich. From the port of arrival many settlers joined the wagon train westward. During the American War of Independence some declared their loyalty to the Crown, moved northwest into Canada and became known as the United Empire Loyalists.

In recent history, notable bearers of the Cuzner surname include Admiral Ralph Wynne Cousins, Us Navy; Norman Cousins American Editor and Author, Saturday Review-World; Frank Cousins, British union Offical and Adminstrator; and Philip Cousins, appointed Under Secretary to Her Majesty's Treasury in 1974,also, Professor David R.
Cousin, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy,University of Sheffield.

The Coat of Arms found for a bearer of the Cuzner surname did not include a motto. Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an
optional component of the Coat of Arms, and many families have chosen to not to display a motto.