KIROUAC FAMILY ASSOCIATION INC.

THE ASSOCIATION

The Kirouac Family Association Inc. is a non-profit organization incorporated on 26 February 1986 in Quebec under the Companies Act. The KFA’s head office is located in the greater Quebec City area. Our association comprises people passionate about the Kirouac family genealogy and history.

Thanks to Jacques Kirouac’s initiative, some fifteen people gathered on 20 November 1978 at Laval University, in Sainte-Foy, Quebec, nurturing one idea: organize a large gathering of all the descendants of Maurice Louis Le Bris de Kervoach, better known as Alexandre de Kervoach by his contemporaries. At the time we believed the Ancestor had arrived in New-France in 1730, hence the idea of the 1980 celebration. The first gathering took place at l’Islet-sur-Mer, 16-17 August 1980, where over 700 guests met to commemorate the 250th Anniversary of the arrival in New France of the Kirouacs' sole ancestor.


In was such a success that, in the autumn of 1981, the organizing committee decided to plan a second gathering for summer 1982 to commemorate the 250th Anniversary of the ancestor's marriage to Louise Bernier. In addition, the following year, in 1983, the committee decided to form a family association and also join the recently established Fédération des familles souches québécoises i.e. federation of Quebec's founding families.


Photo: 1980 Holiday Opening.

When the Association was incorporated in 1986, the spelling “Kirouac” was chosen as it seemed to be the most common form in use in the New World. Of course today, there are several ways of writing our family name. The various forms used in North America are: Kirouac, Kirouack, Kyrouac, Kérouac, Kérouack, Kéroack, Keroac and Keroack. In 2018, we have learned that KIRACK is the family name of a branch or the Kirouacs living mainly in the American West.


Towards the end of the 19th century, in the United States, sometimes the name was spelled Curwack which, later evolved into Curwick. However, Curwack eventually disappeared and, nowadays, only Curwick remains in use.


In addition, some Kervoach descendants in Canada created a new family name when they adopted ''Breton'', in reference to Alexandre de Kervoach known as the ''Breton''. In the United States, ''Breton'' even evolved into ''Burton''.


Our association aims to link all descendants of the Breton ancestor who chose the name de Kervoach and sometimes wrote it according to the Breton tradition using a K and slash: K/voach however, always pronounced: KERROUAC, regardless of the way the K/ descendants write their name. As for the pronunciation, it is useful to know that for a few centuries, when people wrote, the letters 'u' and 'v' were interchangeable as well as where they were placed in a word!


Definition of a KFA member: one who invests time and energy in furthering the association’s aims or support the volunteers' work with a financial contribution.


Any Kirouac family member or related, or friend, interested in promoting the Association's objectives, or a corporation, a moral person, can join the Association.


Share by: