Blanco History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Germany
Italy
Scotland
Spain

The roots of the Blanco surname reach back to the language of the Viking settlers who populated the rugged shores of Scotland in the Medieval era. The Blanco surname comes from someone having lived in the counties of the Scottish/English Borderlands.

Early Origins of the Blanco family

The surname Blanco was first found in Cumberland at either Great Blencow or Little Blencow, townships in the parish of Greystock, union of Penrith, Leath ward. Of interest is this entry about Little Blencow: "Near an ancient house, once the residence of the Blencows, are some dispersed ruins of buildings, particularly those of a chapel, with a burial-ground adjoining; and near the road is an inclosed cemetery, in which stands a stone cross, with the arms of the family engraved on it." 1

One of the first records of the family was that of Adam de Blencowe who was awarded land by Edward III in 1358 and was "Standard Bearer to William, Baron of Greystoke." 2

It is thought that original family home was built in Great Blencow. The mansion of Ennim, just south of the village was the home for many years of the Blencow family. Blencowe Hall, just to the west of Little Blencow consists of two fortified pele towers joined by connecting buildings.

"The Blencowes of Oxfordshire are probably descended from the ancient family of the name that resided at Marston or Merston, Northamptonshire, for many generations, as far back as the reign of Henry VI.; to this family belonged Sir John Blencowe, a Judge of the Common Pleas." 3

Early History of the Blanco family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Blanco research. Another 100 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1350, 1625, 1640, 1642, 1656, 1683, 1701, 1712, 1718, 1720 and 1925 are included under the topic Early Blanco History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Blanco Spelling Variations

Few standards of spelling and translation existed in the Middle Ages. spelling variations, are thus, an extremely common occurrence in records of ancient Scottish names. Over the years, Blanco has been spelled Blencoe, Blencow, Blencowe, Blacoe, Blackow, Blacowe, Blenco, Blenko, Blencko, Blanco and many more.

Early Notables of the Blanco family

Notable amongst the family at this time was Henry Blencowe, High Sheriff of Cumberland in 1625; and Anne Blencowe, Lady Blencowe, née Wallis (1656-1718), an English compiler of recipes. It is generally thought that she developed an early version of what is now named a "stock cube" or "bouillon cube." She called her recipes "receipts" and were kept in the library of her daughter Susanna Jennens at Weston Hall. The house passed through the female line until the book was discovered by Georgia Sitwell who arranged for the book to be published in 1925...
Another 93 words (7 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Blanco Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Blanco World Ranking

In the United States, the name Blanco is the 1,474^th most popular surname with an estimated 19,896 people with that name. 4 However, in France, the name Blanco is ranked the 2,013^rd most popular surname with an estimated 3,103 people with that name. 5 And in South America, the name Blanco is the 16^th popular surname with an estimated 154 people with that name. 6

Blanco migration to the United States +

Land and opportunity greeted all those who made it across the Atlantic. These settlers and their children went on to play important roles in the forging of the great nations of the United States and Canada. Clan societies and other Scottish organizations have preserved much of this heritage for the ancestors of those brave Scots. Immigration and passenger lists have documented the arrival of various people bearing the name Blanco to North America:

Blanco Settlers in United States in the 16th Century

Antonio Blanco, who arrived in New Granada in 1577
Lucas Blanco, who settled in emigrated to Peru in 1592

Blanco Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Domingo Blanco, who arrived in Puerto Rico in 1803 7
Miguel Blanco, who landed in Puerto Rico in 1804 7
Pero Blanco, who arrived in America in 1811 7
D. Blanco who arrived in New Orleans in 1823
Bartholome Blanco, who arrived in New York in 1825 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Blanco (post 1700) +

Raymond Sindo Blanco (1935-2022), American academic administrator and football coach, First Gentleman of Louisiana from 2004 to 2008
Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (1942-2019), American politician, 54th Governor of Louisiana from January 2004 to January 2008
Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (b. 1942), American politician, Governor of Louisiana (2003-)
Hugo Blanco Galdós (1934-2023), Peruvian politician, Leader of the Confederación Campesina del Perú (CCP, Campesino Confederation of Peru)
Dairon Alberto Blanco Joseph (1992-2020), Cuban footballer who played as a midfielder for the Cuba National Team (2012-2016)
Cecilia Caballero Blanco (1913-2019), Colombian socialite, First Lady (1974–1978)
Hugo Blanco (1940-2015), Venezuelan musician, best known for writing "Moliendo Café"
Henry Ramón Blanco (b. 1971), Venezuelan Major League Baseball player
Dámaso Blanco, Venezuelan baseball player
Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Mexican footballer
... (Another 3 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Blanco Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Quorsum vivere mori
Motto Translation: Wherefore live to die.

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
"List of most common surnames in South America." Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most_common_surnames_in_South_America
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)