Whellock History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Early Origins of the Whellock family

The surname Whellock was first found in Cheshire as Wheelock, a township, in the parish of Sandbach, union of Congleton, hundred of Northwich. 1 2 3

The township dates back to the Domesday Book or 1086, when it was listed as Hoiloch, "named from the River Wheelock, a Celtic river-name meaning 'winding.' " 4

Conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands and large village of Wheelock occupied by under-tenant Ranulph, the Earl of Chester who was recorded in the Domesday Book census of 1086.

One of the first records of the family was found here in 1400 when John de Whelok, was listed as holding lands. 5

Early History of the Whellock family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Whellock research. Another 87 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1400, 1582, 1593, 1622, 1629, 1642, 1653, 1657, 1661, 1677 and 1743 are included under the topic Early Whellock History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Whellock Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Weelock, Wheelock, Wellock, Whellock, Whillock, Whealock and many more.

Early Notables of the Whellock family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Abraham Wheelocke, Wheelock, Whelocke or Wheloc (1593-1653), an English linguist, the first Adams Professor of Arabic at the University of Cambridge. He was born in 1593 at Whitchurch, Shropshire, and spent his early years at Loppington in the same county. From 1622 to 1642 he was minister of St. Sepulchre's, Cambridge. "After election to his fellowship Wheelocke appears to have commenced the study of the oriental languages, then little known in England, and...
Another 79 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Whellock Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Whellock family

Some of the first settlers of this family name or some of its variants were: Edward Wheelock, who settled in Maryland in 1675; Obediah and his wife Martha Sumner Wheelock arrived in Nova Scotia in 1760; Ralph Wheelock, who was recorded in Watertown, MA in 1637.

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. Print
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)