Civis Family History & Genealogy

History

Though the surname Civis does extend back in European government records for at least hundreds of years, it is not currently verified whether this family name has been in continuous use in any families, all the way back to the days of the Roman Empire. However, such long term use is possible, since being a Civis, or citizen of the Roman Empire was a very prestigious thing. As the Roman Senator Cicero said, "Civis Romanus sum," meaning, "I am a Citizen or Rome!" Citizens had the right to petition for trial in Rome, before the Emperor, for any crimes. They could not be executed by crucifixion and could only be executed for treason, not other crimes. They also had the protection of the Roman military and favorable trade status. So any Civis was very likely to let everyone know of their increased status.

Name Origin

Civis comes from ancient Latin and means CITIZEN.

Spellings & Pronunciations

Sometimes spelled as Civish in America. This is because in Slavic languages such as Czech, the terminal S is actually spelled with a diacritical mark and pronounced with an SH sound, so in English the spelling is often normalized and an H is added on the end to reflect the pronunciation. Civisova was also a variant of the name Civis, and was the feminine form. Meaning it applied to a woman with the last name Civis, or the wife of a man with the name Civis. In Czech (and many Slavic languages) the "ova" addition to any surname indicated it belonged to a woman.

Nationality & Ethnicity

Civis started in Rome, but the word is often used as a surname in Central European and Slavic countries. In those countries it is generally accepted that it is indeed a Latin word that means Citizen.

Famous People named Civis

Are there famous people from the Civis family? Share their story.

Early Civises

These are the earliest records we have of the Civis family.