Contents [hide]

Flint History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Suggested Reading Citations

Flint History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The origins of the name Flint are from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It is derived from the personal name Flint. In Old English, patronyms were formed by adding a variety of suffixes to personal names, which changed over time and from place to place. For example, after the Norman Conquest, sunu and sune, which meant son, were the most common patronymic suffixes. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the most common patronymic names included the word filius, which meant son. By the 14th century, the suffix son had replaced these earlier versions. Surnames that were formed with filius or son were more common in the north of England and it was here that the number of individuals without surnames was greatest at this time.

Early Origins of the Flint family

The surname Flint was first found in Suffolk where they held a family seat from very ancient times, and is the name of the great Saxon Gods. The name was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086.

Early History of the Flint family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Flint research. Another 86 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1290, 1300 and 1379 are included under the topic Early Flint History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Flint Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Flint family name include Flint, Flinte, Flindt, Flynt and others.

Early Notables of the Flint family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

John Flint of Suffolk

Flint Ranking

In the United States, the name Flint is the 1,944^th most popular surname with an estimated 14,922 people with that name. 1 However, in the United Kingdom, the name Flint is ranked the 992^nd most popular surname with an estimated 7,011 people with that name. 2

Migration of the Flint family to Ireland

Some of the Flint 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.

Flint migration to the United States +

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Flint surname or a spelling variation of the name include:

Flint Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Thomas Flint, who arrived in Virginia in 1618
Mary Flint, who landed in Virginia in 1628 3
Mrs. Thomas Flint, who landed in Virginia in 1628 3
Thomas Flint, who landed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1635 3
Henry Flint, who arrived in Boston in 1635
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Flint Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

James Flint, who arrived in South Carolina in 1716
David Flint, who arrived in Virginia in 1744

Flint Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Charles Flint, aged 36, who arrived in New York in 1800 3
James Flint, who landed in Charleston, South Carolina in 1831 3
George Flint, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1844 3
Joseph Flint, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 3
E P Flint, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Flint migration to Australia +

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

Flint Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Samuel Flint, British Convict who was convicted in Warwick, Warwickshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Caledonia" on 5th July 1820, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 4
Caroline Flint, who arrived in Holdfast Bay, Australia aboard the ship "Katherine Stewart Forbes" in 1837 5
Ellen Flint, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Lady Emma" in 1837 6
Daniel Flint, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Lysander" in 1840 7
Elizabeth Flint, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Lysander" in 1840 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Flint migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Flint Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Miss Susan Flint, (b. 1769), aged 87, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Sir Edward Paget" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 2nd July 1856 8
Mr. George Flint, British labourer travelling from London aboard the ship "Maori" arriving in Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand heading for Wellington on 16th April 1857 9
Mr. James Flint, (b. 1808), aged 50, British carpenter travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Maori" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 14th April 1858 9
Mrs. Mary Flint, (b. 1808), aged 50, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Maori" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 14th April 1858 9
Miss Sarah Flint, (b. 1836), aged 22, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Maori" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 14th April 1858 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Flint 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. 10

Flint Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

George Flint, who settled in Barbados in 1679

Contemporary Notables of the name Flint (post 1700) +

Jake Flint (d. 2022), American country singer who died in his sleep a few hours after his wedding
Eric Flint (1947-2022), American author, editor, and e-publisher listed on The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and Locus magazine best seller lists
Mitchell Flint (1923-2017), American lawyer and U.S. Navy Fighter pilot during World War II
Timothy Flint (1780-1840), American author
Roland Henry Flint (1934-2001), American poet, and professor of English at Georgetown University
Sam Flint (1882-1980), American actor
Austin Flint (1812-1886), American physician and Professor of medicine
Frank Putnam Flint (1862-1929), American politician and banker, U.S. Senator from California (1905-1911)
Edward Sherrill Flint (1819-1902), American politician, Mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, 1861-63 11
Dutee Wilcox Flint, American Republican politician, Presidential Elector for Rhode Island, 1920; Presidential Elector for Rhode Island, 1920 11
... (Another 28 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Flint family +

HMS Hood

Mr. Sydney G Flint (b. 1905), English Able Seaman serving for the Royal Navy from Willesden, London, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 12

HMS Prince of Wales

Mr. Eric Morgan Flint (b. 1913), English Able Seaman from England, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and died in the sinking 13

Pemberton Mill

Miss Lizzie A. Flint (1844-1860), factory worker in the Pemberton Mill on 10th January 1860 when the mill collapsed trapping 900 workers as rescue attempts continued into the night, an oil lantern was knocked over further engulfing the trapped workers in fire, she survied the colapse but as she was being rescued the fire took hold and she died

The Flint 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: Sine macula
Motto Translation: Without spot.

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 25th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/caledonia
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) KATHERINE STEWART FORBES 1837 arrived Holdfast Bay, near Adelaide, on October 17, 1837. . Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1837KatherineStewartForbes.htm
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) LADY EMMA 1837. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1837LadyEmma.htm
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) LYSANDER 1840. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1840Lysander.htm
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 17) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm
HMS Prince of Wales Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listprincecrew.html