An English surname, the Collier name comes from the Old English term of ‘col’ which meat coal. So it refers to a person who gathered or sold coal. The various spellings for Collier include Colyear, Collyer, Colier, Colyar and Colier. In England the Collier families primarily live in Lancashire, Yorkshire, Cheshire and the city of London, but many are scattered across the rest of England and Wales. In Scotland, the Collier individuals are in Fife, Midlothian and Lanarkshire counties. In the United States those individuals with the Collier surname are mostly in Illinois, Missouri, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Alabama, Georgia and Oklahoma. Famous: Evert Collier (17th century Dutch artist), John Collier (English painter), Lucille Ann Collier (original name for singer and dancer Ann Miller), Elisha Collier (inventor of the flintlock revolver), Jason Collier (professional basketball player), Mark Collier (actor of theater and TV) and Sophia Collier (founder of the American Natural Beverage Corp.).