Close Coat of Arms, Family Crest and Close Family History

Close Family History

The family history of the ancient name Close was found in the irishsurnames.com archives. Close is a locational name meaning 'at the close', from a person who lived near a main residence. Variants of the name include Closs, Clos and Kloss. An early recording of this name was that of a Johannes del Clos who was recorded in the 'Poll Tax' of the West Riding of Yorkshire in the year 1379. A branch of this family from Yorkshire migrated to Ireland in the person of a Richard Close who acquired property in County Monaghan. From there the family moved to County Antrim where a William Close is recorded in the Census of 1659 as one of the Tituladoes at Lisnagarvy in that County. In the nineteenth century one of this family held extensive lands in County Armagh where he was High Sheriff in the year 1854. Other bearers of the names Closs and Close take their name from the native Gaelic O'Clusaigh sept of Ulster Province. The Close family crest (or coat of arms) came into existence many centuries ago. The process of creating these coats of arms began as early as the eleventh century although a form of Proto-Heraldry may have existed in some countries prior to this, including Ireland. The new more formalized art of Heraldry made it possible for families and even individual family members to have their very own family crest, coat of arms, including Close descendants.