Pingley History, Family Crest & Coats of ArmsBehind the name Pingley is a story that begins in the ancient Scottish-English border region among the clans of the Boernician tribe. The Pingley family lived in a place near Stow Roxburghshire, called Hopringle or Pringle. As such, Pingley is a habitation name, a category of surnames that were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. The place name comes from the Old English word hop which referred to an "enclosed valley," and Prjónn, an Old Norse name comprised of components which mean peg and ravine. Thus, the original bearer of the surname came from an area noted for an enclosed valley or a ravine. However some sources presume the name to be derived from "pilgrim," as "they bear in their arms the escallop shells or badges of pilgrims to the Holy Land." 1 2 Early Origins of the Pingley familyThe surname Pingley was first found in Roxburghshire, where the first Chief on record was Robert de Hoppryngil who witnessed a deed by King Alexander III of Scotland in 1250 A.D. Forty-six years later, Ellys Obringkel was Bishop of St. Andrews, and rendered homage to King Edward I of England on his brief conquest of Scotland in 1296. His seal bore a hunting horn. About this time they acquired the Clan territories near Stow and they became close allies of the Black Douglases. 3 "The little silver coin called a pringle, formerly minted in Scotland, and of about the value of an English penny, may have derived its name from one of this family." 4 Early History of the Pingley familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Pingley research. Another 426 words (30 lines of text) covering the years 1200, 1368, 1406, 1450, 1455, 1485, 1513, 1568, 1580, 1625, 1626, 1628, 1631, 1664, 1667, 1689, 1736 and 1976 are included under the topic Early Pingley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Pingley Spelling VariationsBefore the printing press and the first dictionaries appeared, names and other words were often spelled differently every time they were written. Pingley has appeared under the variations Pringle, Pringell, Prindle, Hopringle and others. Early Notables of the Pingley familyNotable among the family at this time was George Pringle (1631-1689), of Torwoodlee, eldest son of James Pringle of Torwoodlee. The Pringles of Torwoodlee, Selkirkshire, are descended from the Pringles of Snailholm, Roxburghshire, the first of the name being George, son of William Pringle of Snailholm who was killed at Flodden in 1513. This George Pringle was murdered in his own house by a party of Liddesdale reivers in 1568. 5Walter Pringle (1625-1667), of Greenknowe, Berwickshire, Scottish Covenanter, was the third son of Robert Pringle, first of Stitchel, Roxburghshire. The Pringles of Stitchel were descended from the Hop Pringles of Craiglatch... Migration of the Pingley family to IrelandSome of the Pingley family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
The Scots who crossed the Atlantic were often on the run from poverty as well as persecution. They brought little with them, and often had nothing of their home country to hand down to their children. In the 20th century, Clan societies and other patriotic Scottish organizations have helped the ancestors of Boernician Scots to recover their lost national legacy. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Pingley were among those contributors: Pingley Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
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