Coat of Arms & Family Crest Details
Sir Bernard Burke, The General Armory of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales, London: Harrison & Sons, 1884
Blazon (the actual original written record)“Gu. a bedel's staff ar. betw. three does' heads erased or”
A record of documented arms, meaning and origin, researched for the Doo family of England.
Sir Bernard Burke, The General Armory of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales, London: Harrison & Sons, 1884
Blazon (the actual original written record)“Gu. a bedel's staff ar. betw. three does' heads erased or”
The Doo arms were recorded in Oxford, c. 1537.
Oxfordshire was farming country with the university at its centre, and both produced families of standing. Scholars and lawyers who did well bought manors nearby, and holding a manor was the ordinary route to a coat of arms.
This is where the arms were entered in the register. Families often moved to other parts of the country, so the same name can turn up in more than one region.
English heraldry allowed arms to be shared by all legitimate descendants of the original owner. These symbols were treated as personal property that moved through the generations to all children. While the eldest son kept the original design, other family members could use the same shield without needing to change it or register their own unique versions.
The surname Doo is a name with deep roots in the English landscape, particularly within the historic university city of Oxford. Records confirm that members of the Doo family were established residents in Oxford as early as 1537, a time when the city was a bustling center of trade and religious transition. The name itself is thought to be topographical or descriptive, likely originating from a Middle English term used to identify people who lived near a specific landmark or possessed a particular trait. Because surnames were still becoming standardized during the sixteenth century, families like the Doos were often recorded in parish registers and local tax rolls as they navigated the social shifts of the Tudor era. By maintaining a presence in a prominent location like Oxford, these early ancestors were part of the foundational community that helped shape the city’s long-standing academic and civic identity.
Middle English term for a dove or a gentle person.
