ETYMOLOGY OF “DEMAURE” SURNAME:

Unfortunately we have not found any records for Jean Iesdore’s mother, Marie Cecile Demaure. However, there is a lot that we do know about her surname. Although Jean Isedore himself was illiterate, his mother was descended from a noble family in Brittany, many of whom were educated & literate.

The “Demaure” surname is a very unusual French surname found mainly in the Ille-Et-Villaine department of Brittany, France. It comes from the noble “De Maure” family in Brittany that have been in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany since at least the 1200s (the De Maure’s descended from the noble “Anast” family that were living in Anast in Ille-et-Vilaine possibly as early as 830. The Anast town was later renamed “Maure” after the Saint-Maur Abbey, established in 843; this is where the “De Maure” branch of the “Anast” family got their name).

The Anast family property has passed down through the generations to the first-born sons; however in the 12th or 13th century, a small portion of this property went to one of the younger sons – this son was given the surname “De Maure”. The parish of Anast was split into two parts; “Anast” (owned by the “Lords of Anast”) and “Maure” (one-third of the Anast parish that belonged to a “Lord Jehanne De Maure”). Shortly after this, the Anast family line appears to have died out & the area of Anast becomes controlled by the Lords of De Maure, and the whole area is renamed ” Maure” (now known as “Maure-de-Bretagne”). Generally speaking, the lordship of Maure continued to be passed down from eldest son to eldest son (almost all were called “Jean de Maure”).

One branch of the noble “De Maure” family (descended from a younger son that inherited little or no property of his own, under the law of primogeniture) settled in Montfort-Sur-Meu, Ille-et-Vilaine. The earliest records for them are from the mid 1500s. This branch of the family later moved to Breteil, Ille-et-Vilaine.

• Suzanne Demaure who was buried in 1545 (St-Jean).
• Olivier Demaure m. (1) Anne Debbo/Dobe (d. 1565) => their daughter Nycolle was baptised in 1555 (St-Jean) (Godfather: Collas Gaultier). Anne died in 1565 and Olivier remarried: (2) Jeanne Lochet => their son Olly was baptised in 1570 (St-Jean) (godfather: Olly “Lepetitgars” – perhaps “Poitiers”?)
• Francois Demaure Snr (d. 1628) & Roulette Mace => (1) Guillaume baptised in 1593 (St-Nicolas). Godfather: Guillaume Lebouteiller. (2) Francoise baptised in 1599 (St-Jean) (godfather François Jamet). (3) Olive baptised in 1596 (St-Jean) (godfather: Pierre Brailleu). NB: Later Francois Demaure Snr married Guillemette Tremaudan (c. 1605).
• Francoise Demaure (baptised 1599) married Guillaume Hobe
• Bertranne Demaure born 1595
• Jean Demaure born 1594