Origin of the Name Gibbs
The origin of the name
Gibbs was found in the allfamilycrests.com archives. Meaning 'son of Gilbert', variants of the name Gibbs include Gilbert, Gilbertson, Gibb, Gibson, Gibbonson, Gibbons and Gibbins. This name is of Anglo-Saxon descent spreading to the Celtic countries of Ireland , Scotland and Wales in early times and is found in many mediaeval manuscripts throughout these countries. Examples of such are a Johannes Gybbson and a Nicholas Gybonson who were recorded in the 'Poll Tax' of the West Riding of Yorkshire, England , in the year 1379. A John Gybbessone was a recorded as a servitor of William Douglas, one of the hostages of Henry VI in 1425. An Elizabeth Gib is recorded in Craigmakerane, Scotland in 1585.
In Ireland this name and its variants were introduced into Ulster Province by settlers who arrived from England and Scotland , especially during the seventeenth century. It was the 'Plantations of Ireland ' in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries that marked the end of Gaelic supremacy in Ireland . While the influx of settlers in the wake of the earlier Anglo-Norman invasion of the twelfth century resulted in a full integration into Irish society of the new arrivals, the same never occurred with the Ulster Planters who maintained their own distinct identity.
In Ireland both Gibbs and Gibson are also branches of the Scottish Clan Buchanan.
The Gibbs 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 Gibbs descendants.