Origin of the Name Coen
The
Coen family history was found in the allfamilycrests.com archives.
Over the centuries Surnames developed a wide number of variants. Different spellings of the same name can be traced back to an original root. Additionally when a bearer of a name emigrated it was not uncommon that their original name would be incorrectly transcribed in the record books at their new location. Surnames were also often altered over the years based on how they sounded phonetically and depending on the prevailing political conditions it may have been advantageous to change a name from one language to another.
Variants of the name Coen
in Ireland include Coyne in Connaught Province and Cowan in County Down in Ulster. This name is derived from the Gaelic O'Cadhain and O'Comhdhain septs who originated near Partry in County Mayo. The sept is taken from the Gaelic word 'cadhan' meaning 'wild goose'.
A sept or clan is a collective term describing a group of persons whose immediate ancestors bore a common surname and inhabited the same territory. Irish septs and clans that are related often belong to even larger groups, sometimes called tribes.
Other variants of this name include Cohen, Kyne, Kilcoyne and Cowan. Over the centuries names were changed according to how they sounded and were pronounced with the same name often being both spelled and pronounced differently in neighboring towns and cities. In modern times the name Coen and its variants are still most associated with the western part of Ireland .
The Coen coat of arms came into existence centuries ago. The process of creating coats of arms (also often called family crests) began in the eleventh century although a form of Proto-Heraldry may have existed in some countries prior to this. The new art of Heraldry made it possible for families and even individual family members to have their very own coat of arms, including all Coen descendants.