Show ContentsCollege History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

College Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Etymology of College

What does the name College mean?

The ancestors of the name College date back to the days of the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from their residence in Coldridge, in Devon. Alternatively, the family dould have originated in Colwich, a parish, in the S. division of the hundred of Pirehill, union, and N. division of the county of Staffordshire. 1

"A writer in West Scotland said there was a family or families named Colledge resident for many generations at Hawick, Darnick, near Melrose, and Lauder; in Edinburgh for over 200 years and also in Glasgow." 2

Early Origins of the College family

The surname College was first found in Nottinghamshire, where Brian de Colewich was registered in 1210. 3

The family were more often than not in "the west of England any court or group of cottages having a common entrance from the street is called a college, and residence at such a place. probably originated the name." 4

Records of the family are very scarce. The Wills at Chester list John Colledge, of Colne, dotkworker, 1639. 5

Early History of the College family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our College research. Another 63 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1578, 1635, 1639, 1670 and 1681 are included under the topic Early College History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

College Spelling Variations

College has been spelled many different ways. Before English spelling became standardized over the last few hundred years, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. As the English language changed in the Middle Ages, absorbing pieces of Latin and French, as well as other languages, the spelling of people's names also changed considerably, even over a single lifetime. Many variations of the name College have been found, including Colledge, College, Collage, Gollege, Golledge, Callage, Calledge, Gollidge, Collige, Collidge and many more.

Early Notables of the College family

  • Stephen College (Colledge) (c.1635-1681), an English joiner, activist Protestant, and supporter of the perjury underlying the fabricated Popish Plot

College migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia included the First Fleet of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

First Fleet
  • Mr. Thomas College, (Golledge), (1770 - 1836), aged 19, British settler convicted in London, England in 1787, sentenced to 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the ship "Neptune" leaving in 1789 arriving in New South Wales, Australia in 1790 6
  1. Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. Print.
  2. 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)
  3. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  4. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  5. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  6. Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 4th February 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships

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