| ![Show Contents]() Schank History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
An ancient Scottish tribe called the Boernicians were the ancestors of the first people to use the surname Schank. It is a name for a person with long legs, or a peculiar manner of gait. Schank is a nickname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames. Nicknames form a broad and miscellaneous class of surnames, and can refer directly or indirectly to one's personality, physical attributes, mannerisms, or even their habits of dress. It derives from the Old English word sceanca, which means shin bone, or leg. While this word has survived in Scotland, it has been replaced in England, by the Old Norse word leggr, which means leg. "Shank, in Scotland, is a topographical word, meaning the projecting point of a hill. The family existed in early times in Mid-Lothian, the founder being Murdoch Schank, who is said to have discovered, and taken charge of, the body of Alexander III., King of Scotland, who met his death while hunting in 1286. For this service, Robert Bruce presented him with the lands of Castlerigg." 1 Early Origins of the Schank familyThe surname Schank was first found in Midlothian, from the lands of Shank, where the family held a family seat from very ancient times. 2 3 They were designated as 'Shank of that Ilk" meaning an ancient Clan who possessed lands of that same name. Murdoch Shank, son of the first recorded chief of the Clan of Shank in MidLothian, was granted the lands of Kinghorn in Fife by a Charter from King Robert the Bruce of Scotland in the year 1319 for his allegiance and loyalty of the clan in his fight for the crown of Scotland. 4 "Thomas Schankis witnessed a charter in the Castle of Cumnock, 1426, and in 1474 John de Schankis appears as charter witness in Glasgow. Stene Schanx, witness in Lanark. 1488, appears two years later as Stene Synkis, and in 1489 James Schankis had remission for his part in holding Dunbertane Castle against the king." 4 Early History of the Schank familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Schank research. Another 209 words (15 lines of text) covering the years 1426, 1489, 1490, 1503, 1508, 1595, 1599, 1620, 1630, 1635, 1636, 1643, 1712, 1725, 1740, 1758, 1766, 1771, 1776, 1823 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Schank History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Schank Spelling VariationsSpelling rules only evolved in the last few centuries with the invention of the printing press and the first dictionaries. Spelling variations are extremely common in names from before that period. Schank has been spelled Shank, Shanke, Schank, Schanke, Shankis, Schankis, Shanks, Shanx, Schanx and many more. Early Notables of the Schank familyNotable amongst the family at this time was - John Schank (1740-1823), the Scottish admiral, born in 1740, son of Alexander Schanck of Castlereg, Fifeshire, first went to sea in the merchant service, and entered the navy in 1758 on board the Duke...
Schank RankingIn the United States, the name Schank is the 11,311st most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 5  Migration of the Schank family to Ireland
Some of the Schank family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 60 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
| Schank migration to the United States | + |
After making their great crossing, many Boernician-Scottish families settled along the east coast of North America. When the War of Independence broke out, United Empire Loyalists moved north to Canada while the rest stayed to fight. The ancestors of many of these Scots still populate the continent. This century, through Clan societies and other Scottish organizations, they began to rediscover their collective national heritage. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Schank or a variant listed above:
Schank Settlers in United States in the 18th Century- Theobald Schank, who landed in America in 1740 6
Schank Settlers in United States in the 19th Century- Karl Schank, who arrived in Brazil in 1825 6
- Nikolaus Schank, who arrived in America in 1837 6
- Peter Schank, who landed in North America in 1840 6
- Franz Karl Schank, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1846 6
- Jakob Schank, who arrived in North America in 1847 6
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
| Contemporary Notables of the name Schank (post 1700) | + |
- Mike Schank (1965-2022), American actor and musician from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, known for American Movie (1999), Storytelling (2001) and Coven (2000)
- Thomas D. Schank, American fighter pilot and flying ace in the U.S. Army Air Forces, during World War II, credited with 5 aerial victories
- Admiral John Schank (1740-1823), Scottish officer of the British Royal Navy, eponym of Cape Schanck, Victoria, Australia
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: Spero
Motto Translation: I hope.
- Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
- Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
- Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
- 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)
- "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
- 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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Schank migration to the United States 
Scotland
Ireland
England
