Show ContentsCoppinger History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Coppinger family

The surname Coppinger was first found in County Cork (Irish: Corcaigh) the ancient Kingdom of Deis Muin (Desmond), located on the southwest coast of Ireland in the province of Munster, where they are thought to have come originally from Denmark, perhaps as early as the 10th century.

Early History of the Coppinger family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Coppinger research. Another 185 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1301, 1319, 1422, 1461, 1634, 1636, 1638, 1639, 1642, 1753, 1794, 1808, 1830 and 1893 are included under the topic Early Coppinger History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Coppinger Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Coppinger, Coppenger, Copenger, Copinger, Coppynger, Copinsher, Coppinsher and many more.

Early Notables of the Coppinger family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was

  • William Coppinger (1753-1830), Roman Catholic Bishop, in Cork, scion of one of the oldest Catholic Houses in the South of Ireland

Coppinger Ranking

In the United States, the name Coppinger is the 15,884th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. [1]

Ireland Migration of the Coppinger family to Ireland

Some of the Coppinger family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Coppinger migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Coppinger Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Joseph Coppinger, aged 55, who landed in New York in 1812 [2]
  • Joseph Coppinger, who arrived in Charles Town (Charleston), South Carolina in 1820
  • James E. Coppinger, who arrived in New York, NY in 1836
  • James Coppinger, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1844
  • Maggie Coppinger, aged 30, who landed in America, in 1892
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Coppinger Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • John Coppinger, aged 22, who immigrated to the United States from Mitchelstown, in 1900
  • Hanna Coppinger, aged 26, who settled in America from Kilworth, in 1904
  • Mary Coppinger, aged 60, who landed in America from Thurles, in 1904
  • William Coppinger, aged 21, who immigrated to the United States, in 1905
  • William Coppinger, aged 45, who landed in America from Liverpool, England, in 1906
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Canada Coppinger migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Coppinger Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Thomas Coppinger, who died en route to Quebec in 1847
  • Mr. Thomas Coppinger, aged 30 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Saguenay" departing 5th June 1847 from Cork, Ireland; the ship arrived on 22nd August 1847 but he died on board [3]
  • Charles Coppinger, who was on record in Ontario Canada, in 1861

Australia Coppinger migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Coppinger Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. John Coppinger, (b. 1817), aged 21, Irish labourer who was convicted in Cork, Ireland for 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Clyde" on 11th May 1838, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [4]
  • Thomas Coppinger, aged 24, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1858 aboard the ship "Stamboul"

West Indies Coppinger migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. [5]
Coppinger Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Matthew Coppinger, who arrived in Barbados in 1675
  • John Coppinger who settled in Barbados in 1680

Contemporary Notables of the name Coppinger (post 1700) +

  • John Thomas "Rocky" Coppinger (b. 1974), American Major League Baseball player
  • Ruth Coppinger, Irish activist and politician, county councillor in Fingal County
  • Allan Coppinger, Instructor and Adjunct Professor of Architecture at the University of Manitoba
  • James Coppinger (b. 1981), English footballer
  • Harry Coppinger (b. 1888), Canadian physician and surgeon of Manitoba
  • Raymond Coppinger, professor of biology at Hampshire College (1969-), expert in canine behavior
  • Charles Coppinger (1851-1877), English cricketer


The Coppinger Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Virtute non vi
Motto Translation: By virtue not by force.


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. 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)
  3. Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 70)
  4. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 24th February 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/clyde
  5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies


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