Pernell 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 Pernell family

The surname Pernell 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 Pernell family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Pernell research. Another 73 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1653 and 1666 are included under the topic Early Pernell History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Pernell Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Purnel, Purnell, Pernel, Pernell and others.

Early Notables of the Pernell family

Another 46 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Pernell Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Pernell Ranking

In the United States, the name Pernell is the 8,802^nd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 5

Migration of the Pernell family

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Pernell or a variant listed above were: 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 Pernell (post 1700) +

Pernell Whitaker (b. 1964), nicknamed "Sweet Pea," retired American professional boxer, former WBA Light Middleweight Champion

Citations +

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.
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/