Carlington Surname History

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

The Anglo-Saxon name Carlington comes from when the family resided at Carenton, a port town, and Chateau in Normandy. 1 It is thought that the first of the name in Britain was Norman Hamo de Carenton of Normandy, who came to Britain as a young attendant to his uncle at Hastings in 1066 A.D., and was rewarded for his services by grants of land in county of Chester.

Carrington, or Primrose is a parish in Edinburghshire, Scotland containing with the villages of Thornton and Whitefaugh and Carrington. 2

Early Origins of the Carlington family

The surname Carlington was first found in Cheshire at Carrington, a township and chapelry, in the parish of Bowdon, union of Altrincham, hundred of Bucklow. "The manor was held for more than three centuries by a family of the same name." 3

"A moiety of the manor [at Ashton upon Mersey] was held for many generations by the Carringtons, and passed by a female heir of that family to the Booths." 3

There are two other places named Carrington in Britain: in Lincolnshire which was "first recorded in 1812, and named after Robert Smith, Lord Carrington (1752-1838), who had lands there"; 4 and in Nottinghamshire where "this village, which is of recent origin, consists partly of handsome villas, occupied by merchants and lace manufacturers, who have warehouses in Nottingham." 3

Now part of Greater Manchester, Carrington dates back to the 12th century when it was first listed as Carrintona and possibly meant "estate associated with a man called Cara," from the Old English personal name + "-ing" + "tun." 4

Some of the first record of the family include: Thomas de Karington who was listed in the Assize Rolls of Lancashire in 1219; and John de Carrington found in the Assize Rolls for Cheshire in 1294. 5

In Scotland, the name came from the "lands of Carrington in East Lothian. Wautier de Keringtone, parson of the church of Dunnotre, rendered homage in 1296 [to King Edward I of England]." 6

Early History of the Carlington family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Carlington research. Another 115 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1180, 1219, 1294, 1296, 1796 and 1868 are included under the topic Early Carlington History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Carlington Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Carlington has been recorded under many different variations, including Carrington, Carington, Kerrington, Karrington, Kerington, Carinton and many more.

Early Notables of the Carlington family

Another 35 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Carlington Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Carlington migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Carlington or a variant listed above:

Carlington Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

loam Carlington, who landed in Virginia in 1655 7

Citations +

The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of Scotland. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)