Dorward Coat of Arms, Crest and Name Facts

Dorward is a spelling of the Scottish surname Durward. The name is usually explained as “Someone who held the office of doorkeeper of the Abbey”. Spelled with “o” instead of “u”, Dorward shows how the same name was heard and written differently. Spellings drifted because names were written down by ear in parish books, tax rolls and passenger lists.

About 453 people in the United States were recorded as Dorward in 2010, placing it 46,902 on the national list.

Arms linked to Durward and its spellings were granted to individual families; our heraldry team traces which line they belonged to. Want more than a summary? See the Dorward family name pack.