Show ContentsWigginton History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Wigginton family

The surname Wigginton was first found in Leicestershire at either Wigston Magna or Wigston Parva. Both parishes date back to the Domesday Book of 1086 where they were listed as Wichingestone and Wicestan, respectively. [1]

Wigston Magna literally means "farmstead or estate of a man called Wicing," from the Old English Viking name + "tun." "Magna" means "great." [2]

Wigston Parva literally meant "rocking-stone," from the Old English "wigga" + "stan." [2]

Anther source notes that the word "Wigston" means "Wigg's (Stone) Castle. Wig, a descendant of Woden (who probably in the 3rd cent. A.D.), was an ancestor of the kings of Wessex." [3]

"Wig occurs in the ancestry of Cerdic, king of the West Saxons, and Wiga is found in the Domesday of Yorkshire. Hence perhaps Wigson, Wigget, Wiggin, &c.' [4]

The name is rather rare in early rolls. The source "Early London Personal Names" includes Ailmar Wigga, c. 1130, while the Pipe Rolls of Essex list Walter Wigge in 1204. [5]

Early History of the Wigginton family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wigginton research. Another 81 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1404, 1548, 1564 and 1597 are included under the topic Early Wigginton History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wigginton Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Wigston, Wigeton, Wiggeton, Wiggstone, Wigstone, Wigton, Wixton, Wickston, Wigginton, Wiggington, Wiginton, Wigginton, Wiginston, Wigingston and many more.

Early Notables of the Wigginton family

Notables of the family at this time include

  • Giles Wigginton (fl. 1564-1597), an English divine, born at Oundle in Northamptonshire, was educated at Cambridge, under the patronage of Sir Walter Mildmay[6]...

Wigginton Ranking

In the United States, the name Wigginton is the 10,139th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. [7]


United States Wigginton migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Wigginton Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • John Wigginton, who arrived in Virginia in 1664 [8]
Wigginton Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • P. W. Wigginton, who immigrated to the United States, in 1907
  • Peter W. Wigginton, aged 43, who settled in America, in 1909
  • George I. Wigginton, aged 34, who landed in America, in 1909
  • Margarethe Wigginton, aged 46, who settled in America, in 1910
  • Grace Wigginton, aged 28, who immigrated to the United States from London, England, in 1912
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Canada Wigginton migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Wigginton Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • George Wigginton, who landed in Prince Edward Island in 1817

Contemporary Notables of the name Wigginton (post 1700) +

  • Peter Dinwiddie Wigginton (1839-1890), American politician, Representative from California 4th District, 1875-77, 1878-79; Candidate for Governor of California, 1886 [9]
  • Brooks "Eliot" Wigginton (b. 1942), American writer, best known for his Foxfire books
  • Ron Wigginton (b. 1944), American artist and landscape architect
  • Ty Wigginton (b. 1977), American Major League Baseball player
  • Randy Wigginton, one of Apple Computer's first employees, creator of MacWrite and Full Impact


  1. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  2. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  3. Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
  4. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  5. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  6. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  7. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  8. 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)
  9. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 18) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


Houseofnames.com on Facebook