Show ContentsPollin History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Pollin was carried to England in the enormous movement of people that followed the Norman Conquest of 1066. It comes from the Norman-Christian given name Paulinus, which belonged to an early settler Anglo-Norman settler.

Early Origins of the Pollin family

The surname Pollin was first found in Staffordshire from very ancient times, and Lincolnshire where they were Lords of the Manor of Odcombe. The origin of the name has long since faded into the mists of time but most scholars give the name as a Norman Christian name belonging to a settler, Paulinus, who landed in England soon after the Norman Conquest.

Early History of the Pollin family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Pollin research. Another 130 words (9 lines of text) covering the year 1636 is included under the topic Early Pollin History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Pollin Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Paulin, Paulyn, Pollen, Pollyn, Pollin, Polyn and many more.

Early Notables of the Pollin family

More information is included under the topic Early Pollin Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Pollin family to Ireland

Some of the Pollin family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Pollin migration to the United States +

Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Pollin name or one of its variants:

Pollin Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Peter Pollin, who arrived in America in 1803 1
  • Peter Pollin, who settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1813


  1. 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)


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