Show ContentsMan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

In ancient Scotland, Man was a Strathclyde-Briton name for someone who lived in Aberdeen.

Early Origins of the Man family

The surname Man was first found in Aberdeenshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Obar Dheathain), where the first records was of John Man who was admitted burgess of Aberdeen in 1399. Christina Man in Aberdeen was described in 1411 as "communis receptor meretricium et furium". Nicolaus Man was juror on inquest for ascertaining the former tenure of the lands of Kilrawakys et Geddes in 1431. 1

In England, "the Manns have found a home in Norfolk, Suffolk, and Cambridgeshire for at least six centuries, Man being the early form of the name. There was a family of Mann in Norwich at the beginning of last century, and the name is still in the city." 2

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 included: Bartholomew le Man, Somerset; and Michael le Man, Oxfordshire while the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed Patricius de Man; Johannes de Man; Cecilia Manne; and Johannes de Manne as all holding lands there at that time. 3

"Mann was an old and numerous Widecombe [Devon] name in the 16th and 17th centuries, and it still has its principal home in the county in that neighbourhood." 2

Early History of the Man family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Man research. Another 124 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1472, 1512, 1523, 1529, 1533, 1537, 1538, 1540, 1547, 1569, 1586, 1597, 1606, 1625, 1641, 1700, 1720, 1721, 1742, 1761 and 1790 are included under the topic Early Man History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Man Spelling Variations

Prior to the first dictionaries, scribes spelled words according to sound. This, and the fact that Scottish names were repeatedly translated from Gaelic to English and back, contributed to the enormous number of spelling variations in Scottish names. Man has been spelled Mann, Mangus, Man and others.

Early Notables of the Man family

Notable amongst the family at this time was

  • John Man (1512-1569), Dean of Gloucester, born in 1512 at Laycock, Wiltshire, according to Wood, though the records of Winchester College name Winterbourne Stoke, in that county, as his birthplace. He...
  • James Man or Main (1700?-1761), was a Scottish philologist, born about 1700 at White Wreath, in the parish of Elgin, Morayshire, was educated first at the parish school of Longbride, and afterwards at...

Man Ranking

In the United States, the name Man is the 13,462nd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 4 However, in France, the name Man is ranked the 6,762nd most popular surname with an estimated 1,000 - 1,500 people with that name. 5

Ireland Migration of the Man family to Ireland

Some of the Man family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 48 words (3 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Man migration to the United States +

In such difficult times, the difficulties of raising the money to cross the Atlantic to North America did not seem so large compared to the problems of keeping a family together in Scotland. It was a journey well worth the cost, since it was rewarded with land and freedom the Scots could not find at home. The American War of Independence solidified that freedom, and many of those settlers went on to play important parts in the forging of a great nation. Among them:

Man Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Nich Man, who landed in Virginia in 1636 6
  • Richard Man, who landed in New England in 1646 6
  • James Man, who landed in Maryland in 1649-1652 6
  • Daniel Man, who settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1651
  • Tho Man, who arrived in Virginia in 1658 6
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Man Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Sarah Man, who landed in Virginia in 1702 6
  • Herman Man, who arrived in New York in 1709 6
  • Henrich Man, who landed in New York in 1710 6
  • Anna Margrit Man, aged 27, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1732 6
  • Jacob Man, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1732 6
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Man Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Andrew Man, aged 43, who arrived in Virginia in 1812 6
  • J F Man, who arrived in Charleston, South Carolina in 1835 6
  • John Man, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1850 6
  • Joachim Man, who arrived in New York, NY in 1850 6
  • A Man, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 6
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Canada Man migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Man Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Moses Man, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1760
  • Oliver Man, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1760
  • Isaac Man, who landed in Quebec in 1784
Man Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Jane Man, aged 30, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Edward Reid" in 1833
  • Mary Man, aged 31, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Edward Reid" in 1833

Australia Man migration to Australia +

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

Man Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • William Man, English convict from Lincoln, who was transported aboard the "Agamemnon" on April 22, 1820, settling in New South Wales, Australia 7

West Indies Man 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. 8
Man Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Deborah Man who settled in Barbados in 1667
  • Barnard Man, who settled in Barbados in 1680 with his wife and servants

Contemporary Notables of the name Man (post 1700) +

  • Iron Man (1903-1941), American baseball player
  • Mrs. J. C. Man Jr., American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Texas, 1960 9
  • Harry V. Man (b. 1805), American politician, Mayor of Monroe, Michigan, 1848 9
  • Ernest A. Man, American politician, U.S. Consul in Bergen, 1897; Breslau, 1904-05; U.S. Consular Agent in Schiedam, 1898 9
  • Major General Patrick Holberton Man CB CBE DSO MC (1913-1979), British General Officer Commanding Aldershot District
  • Major General Christopher Man,
  • Man Emmanuel Rabinovich Ray (1890-1976), American painter


The Man 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: Per ardua stabilis
Motto Translation: Firm in adversity.


  1. 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)
  2. Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. 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. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  5. http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
  6. 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)
  7. State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Agamemnon voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1820 with 179 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/agamemnon/1820
  8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  9. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 8) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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