Show ContentsAshwin History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The origins of the Ashwin name lie with England's ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. It comes from when the family lived in one of the various settlements named Ashwell in the counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, and Salop.

Early Origins of the Ashwin family

The surname Ashwin was first found in Hertfordshire, where "the Ashwells, who derived their name originally from the parish thus called, have been for many centuries represented in this county. William Ashwell owned land in Stapleford in the reign of Richard II.; and a monk of St. Albans in the time of Henry VI. bore also the name of William Ashwell. " [1]

"This place derives its name from a well or spring issuing from a rock at the southern extremity of the village, surrounded with ash trees, and forming the source of the small river Rhee. At the time of the Norman survey it was a borough and market-town, having four annual fairs; it was also a royal demesne, and a small manor within the parish was held by Walter Somoner, in petit serjeantry, by the service of providing spits and roasting meat in the king's kitchen, on the day of his coronation. " [2] Ashwell is also a parish in the union of Oakham, hundred of Alstoe, county of Rutland and in Somerset. [3] [4]

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had two early listings for the family: Richard de Aswelle, Suffolk and William de Assewelle, Rutland. [5]

Ernulf de Assewell was listed in the Pipe Rolls of Bedfordshire in 1230, Roger de Asshewell was listed in the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1331, and Richard Asshewll was listed in Gloucestershire in 1391. [6]

Early History of the Ashwin family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ashwin research. Another 106 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1391, 1392, 1478, 1527, 1541, 1612, 1627, 1646, 1647, 1695 and 1798 are included under the topic Early Ashwin History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ashwin 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 Ashwin were recorded, including Ashwell, Aswell, Ashewell, Aishwell, Ayshwell, Aswell, Ashwall, Askwell, Ashwill, Askwill, Ayskwell, Eshwell, Eswell, Eskwell, Eskwill, Aeshwell, Eskwalle, Eshwall and many more.

Early Notables of the Ashwin family

Distinguished members of the family include Richard Ashwell (died 1392), an English politician, Member of the Parliament of England for Gloucester in 1391; and Thomas Ashwell or Ashewell (c. 1478-1527), an English composer of the Renaissance. He was a skilled composer of polyphony, and may have been the...
Another 47 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Ashwin Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Ashwin family to Ireland

Some of the Ashwin family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Australia Ashwin migration to Australia +

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

Ashwin Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • George Ashwin, aged 23, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1850 aboard the ship "Fatima" [7]
  • Alfred Ashwin, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Andromache" in 1850 [8]
  • Edward Ashwin, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Andromache" in 1850 [8]

Contemporary Notables of the name Ashwin (post 1700) +

  • Roy G. Ashwin, American politician, Farmer-Labor Candidate for Michigan State House of Representatives from Oakland County 2nd District, 1936 [9]
  • Chris Ashwin (b. 1987), English rugby union player from Gloucester
  • Bernard Carl Ashwin (1896-1975), New Zealand senior public servant and economist
  • Ashwin Suryakant Dani (1943-2023), Indian billionaire, businessman, and the non-executive chairman of Asian Paints Ltd
  • Ashwin Willemse (b. 1981), South African rugby union player

HMS Royal Oak
  • Albert William Ashwin (1906-1939), born in Aston, Birmingham, England, British Petty Officer Cook with the Royal Navy aboard the HMS Royal Oak (1939) when she was torpedoed by U-47 and sunk; he died in the sinking [10]


  1. Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
  2. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  3. Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. Print.
  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. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  7. State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) The barque FATIMA 1850, 521 tons. Retrieved http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1850Fatima.htm
  8. State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) ANDROMACHE 1850. Retrieved http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1850Andromache.gif
  9. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 8) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  10. Ships hit by U-boats crew list HMS Royal Oak (08) - (Retrieved 2018 February, 9th) - retrieved from https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/crews/ship68.html


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