Cossar
One-Name Study

Topics

• About the Cossar One-Name Study
• Variants
• Frequency of the name
• Distribution of the name
• Data
• Links
• Contact Details

About the Cossar One-Name Study

Some time ago I started a one-name study of the COSSAR and CROSSER surname, including COSSER, COSSOR, CROSSAR and CROSSOR. This study was registered with the Guild of One-Name Studies in London England in 1989. COSSAR is also an acronym for the Colorado Society for the Sons of the American Revolution.

I have many Scottish trees in my records and a number of large English and international bushes.

I am seeking references all around the world, in all time periods and am always interested to hear from people researching these names.

Variants

COSSAR, COSSER, COSSOR

Frequency of the name

It is estimated that as of 2009 the living bearers of this surname in England, Wales and the Isle of Man number around 300. (Figures are not available for Scotland or other countries, as far as I am aware.)

Distribution of the name

The surname seems to have originated in the Scottish borders, although there are lines springing from Lanarkshire. Descendants of these Lanarkshire lines are today in New Zealand, Canada, USA and London England. Descendants of Berwickshire lines are similarly widespread and have settled in Australia also. Today, COSSARs are represented as far apart as Canada, Iceland, Chile and South Africa.

There is a very large group of English COSSARs in the south west of England from the 18th century onwards, and unconnected line in Norfolk England in 1881. In Canada, a family now using the name COSSAR was originally COSSABOOM from the Netherlands. There are also some COSSARs of Italian origin, particularly in the USA and Switzerland; some of these families originally used the name COSSARINI.

The distribution map of the name in the 1901 census of Scotland, England and Wales is shown as the picture on this page.

Data

Sources researched include:

• GRO S Scottish birth, marriage and death civil registration certificates from 1855
• GRO English & Welsh birth, marriage indexes from 1837
• Scottish testament calendars and testaments
• English & Welsh wills from 1858
• 1841 British census index and England & Wales images
• 1851 England & Wales census index and images
• 1861 England & Wales census index and images
• 1871 England & Wales census index and images
• 1881 British census index and images (does not include Ireland)
• 1891 British census index and images
• 1901 British census index and images
• Some Australian birth, marriage and death civil registration indexes
• Some US birth, marriage and death civil registration indexes
• Recent telephone directory entries for the UK, Australia, South Africa and USA

Currently working on:

• 19th and 20th century USA censuses
• New Zealand birth, marriage and death civil registration indexes
• US censuses to 1900 to 1930

Links

I have data on the surnames SCOULAR, DRAPER, BUTTERY and BAUCHOP in Scotland, although I am not conducting One-Name Studies on these names.

Contact details

For further information, contact:

Ann Cossar
E-mail:

This page last updated 27 April 2009.

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Profiles of other one-name studies registered with the Guild may be found here.