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Holding History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Citations

Holding History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The Anglo-Saxon name Holding comes from when the family resided in the county of Lancashire, where they held the estate of Holden in the parish of Haslingden.

Early Origins of the Holding family

The surname Holding was first found in Lancashire where "Holden was an estate in the parish of Haslingden. A family of that name early sprang from the place." 1.

"Lancashire is the great home of the Holdens. The ancient gentle family of the Holdens, of Holden, Haslingden, dates back to the 13th century; from it there branched off in the 16th century the Holdens of Todd Hall in the same parish. The Holdens of Ewood, Livesey, date back to the reign of Henry VIII. The Holdens of Aston, Derbyshire, who go back to the beginning of the 17th century, may hail from the Lancashire stock." 2

Other early records include: Robert de Holden, Lancashire, listed there during the reign of Henry III; and Magota de Holdene who was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls. The Wills at Chester list the following: Oliver Holden, of Haslingden, Lincolnshire in 1588; Adam Holden, of Spotland, Lancashire in 1596; and Catherine Holden, of Holden in 1685. The Preston Guild Rolls of 1642 list Ralph Holden de Holden. 1

Early History of the Holding family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Holding research. Another 104 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1285, 1539, 1571, 1578, 1580, 1583, 1596, 1599, 1618, 1623, 1662, 1710, 1778 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Holding History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Holding Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Holding include Holden, Holdin, Holding, Houlden, Houldin, Howlin and many more.

Early Notables of the Holding family

Notables of the family at this time include Henry Holden (1596-1662), an English Roman Catholic priest and author. "He was the son of Richard Holden, owner of a small estate at Chaigley, near Clitheroe, on the northern slope of Longridge Fell. He was born in 1596, and on 18 September 1618 he went to Douay, taking there the name of Johnson, and in 1623...
Another 63 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Holding Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Holding Ranking

In the United States, the name Holding is the 14,298^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3

Migration of the Holding family to Ireland

Some of the Holding family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 121 words (9 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Holding migration to the United States +

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:

Holding Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

James Holding, who arrived in Virginia in 1638 4
Richard Holding, who arrived in Virginia in 1650 4
Nath Holding, who landed in Virginia in 1652 4
Robert Holding, who landed in Virginia in 1653 4
John Holding, who arrived in Virginia in 1654 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Holding Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Elizabeth Holding, who arrived in Virginia in 1715 4

Holding Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William Holding, aged 35, who arrived in New York in 1812 4
George Holding, aged 32, who landed in Missouri in 1848 4

Holding migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Holding Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mr. William Holding U.E. who arrived at Port Roseway [Shelburne], Nova Scotia on October 26, 1783 was passenger number 174 aboard the ship "HMS Clinton", picked up on September 28, 1783 at Staten Island, New York 5
Mrs. Judith Holding U.E. who arrived at Port Roseway [Shelburne], Nova Scotia on October 26, 1783 was passenger number 294 aboard the ship "HMS Clinton", picked up on September 28, 1783 at Staten Island, New York 5

Holding migration to Australia +

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

Holding Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Robert Holding, English convict from Bedford, who was transported aboard the "Asia" on July 29th, 1823, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia 6
Mr. John Holding, (b. 1821), aged 14, English convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 7 years for house breaking, transported aboard the "Aurora" on 18th June 1835, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 7
Mr. William Holding, English convict who was convicted in Liverpool, Merseyside, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Eden" on 30th September 1848, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Island) 8
Samuel Holding, aged 29, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Oriental,"

Contemporary Notables of the name Holding (post 1700) +

Robert Earl Holding (1926-2013), American billionaire businessman, owner of Sinclair Oil, the Grand America Hotel, the Westgate Hotel and more
Randolph Holding, American politician, Member of Minnesota State House of Representatives 31st District, 1872 9
Frank B. Holding, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from North Carolina, 1952 9
Archibald M. Holding, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Pennsylvania, 1924 9
Edward "Eddie" Holding (1930-2014), English footballer and manager
Michael Anthony Holding (b. 1954), retired West Indian cricketer and commentator who played for the West Indies cricket team.
Allan Clyde Holding (1931-2011), Australian politician, Leader of the Opposition in Victoria, Prime Minister (1983)

The Holding 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: Nec temere nec timide
Motto Translation: Neither rashly nor timidly.

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1823 with 151 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1823
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 20th August 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/aurora
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 15th November 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eden
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 26) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html