Show ContentsArthington History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Arthington family

The surname Arthington was first found in Yorkshire, in the West Riding, where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor. After the Battle of Hastings in 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, having prevailed over King Harold, granted most of Britain to his many victorious Barons. It was not uncommon to find a Baron, or a Bishop, with 60 or more Lordships scattered throughout the country. These he gave to his sons, nephews and other junior lines of his family and they became known as under-tenants. They adopted the Norman system of surnames which identified the under-tenant with his holdings so as to distinguish him from the senior stem of the family. After many rebellious wars between his Barons, Duke William, commissioned a census of all England to determine in 1086, settling once and for all, who held which land. He called the census the Domesday Book, 1 indicating that those holders registered would hold the land until the end of time. Hence, conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands of Arthington or Ardington, held Richard de Surdeval from the Count of Mortain, who was recorded in the Domesday Book census of 1086. It is notable for its nunnery.

Early History of the Arthington family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Arthington research. Another 117 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1394, 1415, 1420, 1487, 1499, 1510, 1600, 1615, 1646, 1660 and 1671 are included under the topic Early Arthington History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Arthington Spelling Variations

Norman surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are largely due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England, as well as the official court languages of Latin and French, also had pronounced influences on the spelling of surnames. Since medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings. The name has been spelled Ardington, Ardinton, Arthington, Arthinton and others.

Early Notables of the Arthington family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

  • Henry Arthington (1615-1671), an English politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1646 and 1660

Migration of the Arthington family

Many English families emigrated to North American colonies in order to escape the political chaos in Britain at this time. Unfortunately, many English families made the trip to the New World under extremely harsh conditions. Overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the stormy Atlantic. Despite these hardships, many of the families prospered and went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the United States and Canada. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the name Arthington or a variant listed above: Herbert Ardington, aged 21, who arrived at Ellis Island from Rillington, in 1906; John Ardington, aged 25, who arrived at Ellis Island from London, England, in 1913.


Contemporary Notables of the name Arthington (post 1700) +

  • Dr Giles Arthington Worsley MA PhD, FSA (1961-2006), English architectural historian, author, editor, journalist and critic
  • Colonel Sir William Arthington Worsley (1890-1973), 4th Baronet of Hovingham Hall, an English amateur first-class cricketer

HMS Cornwall
  • Norman Arthington (d. 1942), British Stoker 1st Class aboard the HMS Cornwall when she was struck by air bombers and sunk; he died in the sinking 2


  1. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  2. Force Z Survivors Crew List HMS Cornwall (Retrieved 2018, February 13th) - Retrieved from https://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listcornwallcrew.html#A


Houseofnames.com on Facebook