Eyre is a surname with origins in England.

Origin

Truelove the "Eyr" or "Heyr" was granted land in

Derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...

as a reward for his services at the 1066

Battle of Hastings The Battle of Hastings was fought on 14 October 1066 between the Norman-French army of William, Duke of Normandy, and an English army under the Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godwinson, beginning the Norman Conquest of England. It took place appr ...

, together with a

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

featuring "a human leg in

armour Armour (Commonwealth English) or armor (American English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, e ...

couped at the thigh quarterly

argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...

and

sable The sable (''Martes zibellina'') is a species of marten, a small omnivorous mammal primarily inhabiting the forest environments of Russia, from the Ural Mountains throughout Siberia, and northern Mongolia. Its habitat also borders eastern Kaz ...

spurred", in reference to the sacrifice of his limb. Some of these features may persist in one of the current Eyre

coats of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic ac ...

, which features three gold quatrefoils on a black chevron with a white background. Another variation of the story of the origin of the Eyre crest is that Humphrey le Heyr of Bromham rescued Richard Coeur de Lion at the siege of Ascalon, at the cost of his leg, and that the leg couped was granted to him in remembrance of the occasion.

People

* Agnes Gardner Eyre (1881–1950), American pianist and composer * Alan Eyre (1930–2020), British-born Jamaican geographer * Alan Eyre (diplomat), Persian-language spokesperson of the United States Department of State * Anthony Eyre (Boroughbridge MP) (1727–88) * Anthony Eyre (Nottinghamshire MP) (1634–71) * Charles Eyre (disambiguation), several people * Chris Eyre, film director and producer * Damian Eyre, Australian police officer murdered in 1988 * Damian Eyre (cricketer), British cricketer *

Edward John Eyre Edward John Eyre (5 August 181530 November 1901) was an English land explorer of the Australian continent, colonial administrator, Lieutenant-Governor of New Zealand's New Munster province, and Governor of Jamaica. Early life Eyre was born in ...

, Australian explorer and Jamaican Governor * Ella Eyre, British singer-songwriter * George Eyre (died 1839), Royal Navy officer * Giles Eyre (disambiguation), several people * Henry Eyre (barrister) (1628–1678), British politician and lawyer * Henry Eyre (British Army officer) (1834–1904), British Army officer and politician * Isaac Eyre (1875–1947), English footballer * Ivan Eyre, Canadian artist * James Eyre (disambiguation), several people * Jane Eyre (New Zealand artist) (1874–1952) * Jehu Eyre (1738–1781), American businessman, soldier the American Revolution and diarist, member of the Eyre family (see below) * Jim Eyre (caver) (1925–2008), British caver * Jim Eyre (architect), British architect and winner of the Bodley Medal * John Eyre (disambiguation), several people * Kingsmill Eyre (1682–1743), English garden designer and inventor * Les Eyre, former Norwich City F.C. footballer * Manuel Eyre, figure of the American Revolution and powerful business leader in the early American Republic * Mary Eyre (1923–2013), British sportswoman and administrator * M. Banning Eyre, Canadian writer and guitarist * Peter Eyre (born 1942), American-born English actor * Peter Eyre (cricketer) (1939–2025), English cricketer * Reginald Eyre (1924–2019), British politician * Richard Eyre (disambiguation), several people * Robert Eyre (disambiguation), several people * Samuel Eyre (1633–1698), English judge * Scott Eyre, Major League Baseball relief pitcher * Thomas Eyre, multiple people * Tommy Eyre, English rock musician * Wayne Eyre, Canadian general * William Eyre (disambiguation), several people * Willie Eyre, Major League Baseball relief pitcher * Wilson Eyre (1858–1944), American architect

Fictional characters

Jane Eyre (character) Jane Eyre is the fictional heroine and the titular protagonist in Charlotte Brontë's 1847 Jane Eyre, novel of the same name. The story follows Jane's infancy and childhood as an orphan, her employment first as a teacher and then as a governess, ...

, the titular protagonist of the novel by

Charlotte Brontë Charlotte Nicholls (; 21 April 1816 – 31 March 1855), commonly known as Charlotte Brontë (, commonly ), was an English novelist and poet, the eldest of the three Brontë family, Brontë sisters who survived into adulthood and whose novel ...

Origin

People

Fictional characters

See also

References

Further reading