Ivory
Usually a surname of Norman local origin, tied to Ivry in Normandy, though some English usage may also reflect the personal name Ivor.
The #4,893 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 42,875 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The best-known explanation links Ivory to Ivry, a place-name in Normandy, used for people who came from that locality. Early English surname writers also connected it with the Norman family de Ivery, a noble line associated with the castle of Ivry. Some bearers may instead have taken the name from the personal name Ivor, which Bardsley treats as a possible baptismal source.
History
The surname appears in medieval English records in forms such as de Ivery and later Ivory/Ivery. Norman local surnames were often carried to England after the Conquest and then simplified in spelling over time. Because the name sometimes overlaps with the given name Ivor, its origins can vary by family line.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Nineteenth-century surname writers reported a legend that the de Ivery family was granted the castle of Ivry after a boar-hunting feat.
From the historical record
“IVISON. See Ive. IVORY. " The family De Ivery were descended from Rodolph, half-brother to Richard the first, duke of Normandy, who for killing a monstrous boar, wliile hunting with the Duke, was rewarded with tlie castle of Ivery, oi> the liver I'Evre, and JAC from thence entitled Comes de Iberio." Dunkin's…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom