Show ContentsDando History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Dando is of Anglo-Saxon origin. It was name for a male, where it was originally used as a pet form of Andrew. [1] Essentially the surname Dando originally derived from the Old Scottish name Andrew.

Early Origins of the Dando family

The surname Dando was first found in Surrey in the parish of Leigh, where the Dendy family held estates and made sizable donations to the local church. [2] The first record of the family was Dandi (without surname) who was listed in Lincolnshire in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1271-1273. The same rolls list Richard Dande in Huntingdonshire. Later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed Willelmus Dandy, et uxor ejus and the Lay Subsidy Rolls of Lancashire listed Thomas Dandisone in 1332. [3] Adam Dandy was listed in the Register of Freeman of Yorkshire in 1312. [1]

The name may also be from Dand, Dandy, familiarly used in Scotland for Andrew. Comparing the Scottish records to the English ones, we can see that the Scottish ones were more recent and in many cases the name appears as a forename, not a surname. "Andrew Kerr, son of the eighth lord of Ferniehurst, who died in 1499, was generally known as 'Dand Kerr.' Dand was common as a Christian name in the south of Scotland in the sixteenth century, and in the list of tenants under the Abbey of Kelso in 1567 we find Dand Howy, Dand Glernet, Dand Lermont, Dand Craige, Dand Stobe, etc." [4]

Early History of the Dando family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dando research. Another 96 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1613, 1674, 1806, 1819 and 1831 are included under the topic Early Dando History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dando Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Dando have been found, including Dandie, Dandy, Dande, Dando and others.

Early Notables of the Dando family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

  • Joseph Haydon Bourne Dando was born in Somers Town in 1806. At an early age he commenced the study of the violin under his uncle, Signor Brandi. In 1819 he became a pupil of Mori, with whom he continu...


United States Dando migration to the United States +

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Among the first immigrants of the name Dando, or a variant listed above to cross the Atlantic and come to North America were:

Dando Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Joseph Dando, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1838

Australia Dando migration to Australia +

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

Dando Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

West Indies Dando 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. [7]
Dando Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • William Dando who settled in Barbados in 1654

Contemporary Notables of the name Dando (post 1700) +

  • William R. "Bill" Dando (1932-2022), American football player and head football coach at John Carroll University in 1964 and at the University at Buffalo from 1977 to 1989
  • John Dando Sedding (1838-1891), English architect, second son of Richard and Peninnah Sedding, and younger brother of Edmund Sedding

Senghenydd colliery
  • Mr. Stan Heziciah Dando (b. 1886), Welsh coal miner from Senghenydd, Caerphilly, Wales who was working at the Senghenydd colliery when there was an explosion on the 14th October 1913; he died


  1. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  2. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  3. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  4. 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)
  5. Convict Records of Australia. Retreived 28th January 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/chapman
  6. Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 1st February 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/charles-kerr
  7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies


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