| ![Show Contents]() Pernal History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 England The Norman Conquest of England in 1066 added many new elements to an already vibrant culture. "Petronilla, a feminine diminutive of the Latin Petronius, was the name of a saint much invoked against fevers and regarded as a daughter of St Peter. The name was accordingly considered to be a derivative of Peter and became one of the most popular of girls' names, the vernacular Parnell being still used as a christian name as late as the 18th century in Cornwall." 1 "This surname is derived from the name of an ancestor. 'the son of Petronilla.' This was abbreviated to Paronel, and then to Parnel or Pernel." 2 "Pernel, the pimpernel, a flower that always shuts up its blossoms before rain." 3 Early Origins of the Pernal familyThe surname Pernal was first found in Devon and Cornwall. "In this county the Parnells have their home in the Totnes district. William Parnell was a well - to - do Barnstaple townsman, in the reign of Charles I. (G.). The Parnells are now principally seated in Devon and Cornwall, but there are a few in Cambridgeshire." 4 Early English rolls provide us a glimpse of the spelling variations used through Medieval times. Today we typically need to look beyond the spellings of these entries and concentrate on a phonetic appreciation of the names. Purnelle, Petronille, Peronelle Kepeherme were listed in 1249, 1250, 1253 at Oseney in Oxfordshire; Pernel was found in the Assize Rolls for Somerset in 1268 and later Parnell in the Assize Rolls for 1280. Johanna Peronele was listed in Cambridgeshire in 1250, Agnes Peronell in Yorkshire in 1274, Roger Pernel in Cambridgeshire in 1295, Edith Purnele in Wiltshire in 1297 and Robert Parnel in the Subsidy Rolls for Staffordshire in 1332. 1 Early History of the Pernal familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Pernal research. Another 73 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1653 and 1666 are included under the topic Early Pernal History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Pernal Spelling VariationsNorman surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are largely due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England, as well as the official court languages of Latin and French, also had pronounced influences on the spelling of surnames. Since medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings. The name has been spelled Purnel, Purnell, Pernel, Pernell and others. Early Notables of the Pernal familyAnother 46 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Pernal Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Pernal familyMany English families emigrated to North American colonies in order to escape the political chaos in Britain at this time. Unfortunately, many English families made the trip to the New World under extremely harsh conditions. Overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the stormy Atlantic. Despite these hardships, many of the families prospered and went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the United States and Canada. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the name Pernal or a variant listed above: John, Marg, and Richard Purnell who settled in Virginia in 1652; Thomas Purnell settled in Virginia in 1635; William Purnell settled in Barbados in 1685.
| Contemporary Notables of the name Pernal (post 1700) | + |
- Pernal Williams (b. 1991), Saint Lucian international footballer
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
- Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
- Halliwell, James Orchard. A Dictionary of Archaic and Provincial WordsLondon: John Russel Smith, Old Compton Street, Soho, 1848, Digital, 2 Vols
- Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
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