Hero History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The Anglo-Saxon name Hero comes from the name Rabin or Robin, which are pet forms of the personal name Robert. The name is preceded the Old English prefix har, which means gray. Hence, the surname Hero literally means gray Rabin or gray Robin. 1

Early Origins of the Hero family

The surname Hero was first found in the parish of Taxal, Derbyshire at Horobin. 2

A very rare name, we did find some late entries for the family in Cheshire. The Wills at Chester list John Horabin, of Westhoughton, 1591; Thomas Horabin, of Bolton, 1612; Richard Horrobin, of Bolton, 1633; and William Horrobin, of Little Bolton, 1633. "It will be seen that the Bolton Horobins first became Horrobin, and then Harrobin, as they exist to-day." 2

Early History of the Hero family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hero research. Another 154 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1591, 1596, 1612, 1618, 1633, 1686, 1696, 1713, 1783 and 1790 are included under the topic Early Hero History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hero Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Hero were recorded, including Horrobin, Horrabin, Horobin, Horabin, Harrobin, Harrabin, Harobin, Harbin, Harbine, Harbyn, Harbynn, Horbyn and many more.

Early Notables of the Hero family

Another 42 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Hero Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hero migration to the United States +

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Hero family emigrate to North America:

Hero Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Oble Hero, French settler who arrived in Virginia in 1622 aboard the ship "Abigaile" 3

Hero Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

William Hero, who landed in America in 1795 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Hero (post 1700) +

Peter deCourcy Hero (1942-2016), American philanthropy consultant
Andrew Hero Jr., American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Louisiana, 1888 4
Hero "Dick" or "Tiger" Murunga (b. 1952), Kenya bronze medalist boxer at the 1972 Summer Olympics

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, May 19) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html