[2] The Conant surname is thought to be of Celtic, possibly Breton origin.

[2] The earliest known member of the most prominent line of the family was John Conant, a yeoman of East Budleigh, Devon.

John Conant (1608–1694) was a noted theologian who was Regius Professor of Divinity and Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University.

[1][3] Disliking the increasingly repressive government at Plymouth, he soon left and was appointed the first governor of an English settlement on Cape Ann, subsequently founding the town of Salem, Massachusetts.

[2] The following genealogical tree illustrates the links among the more notable family members:[2][3]