Bland History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The name Bland is part of the ancient legacy of the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. It is a product of when the family lived at Bland in the West Riding of Yorkshire.

Probably "an Anglo-Saxon personal name with the usual local suffix dropped. [cp. Old English blandan, to blend; and the derived blanden-feax, 'having mixed-coloured or grey hair.'] " 1

However, "the adjective bland, mild, gentle is, I think or insufficient antiquity to be the etymon. The Blands of Kippax, at a very early period, resided at and gave name to Bland's Gill, co. York " 2

"This surname is derived from a geographical locality. 'of Bland,' one of the four hamlets of which the town of Sedburgh (Yorkshire) is comprised. It is not a complimentary nickname, but distinctly local." 3

"The Blands of Kippax, at a very early period, resided at and gave name to Bland's Gill, co. York." 2

Early Origins of the Bland family

The surname Bland was first found in at Bland or Bland's Gill in the chapel of How Gill and the parish of Sedburg in Yorkshire. One reference claims that name came from the hamlet of Blond. The earliest mention of the name was in 1132 where Richard, son of Hugh Bland of Disford was listed as benefactor relating to the Abbey of Foundations. 4

The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed: Johannes de Bland; Adam de Bland; Matilda Bland, 1379; and Wymerk de Bland. 3

Early History of the Bland family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bland research. Another 176 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1555, 1563, 1604, 1614, 1629, 1642, 1653, 1657, 1662, 1663, 1664, 1665, 1668, 1671, 1681, 1686, 1691, 1693, 1700, 1712, 1713, 1715, 1720, 1727, 1743, 1756, 1763, 1928 and 1950 are included under the topic Early Bland History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bland Spelling Variations

The first dictionaries that appeared in the last few hundred years did much to standardize the English language. Before that time, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. The language was changing, incorporating pieces of other languages, and the spelling of names changed with it. Bland has been spelled many different ways, including Bland, Blands and others.

Early Notables of the Bland family

Notables of the family at this time include

John Bland (died 12 July 1555) English Protestant clergyman and martyr, rector of Adesham, burnt at the stake; Sir Thomas Bland, 1st Baronet of Kippax Park (1614-1657); Sir Francis Bland, 2nd Baronet...
Tobias Bland (1563?-1604), English divine, born in or about 1563, matriculated as a sizar of Pembroke Hall, Cambridge
Elizabeth Bland (fl. 1681-1712), was celebrated for her knowledge of Hebrew, and was the daughter and heiress of Robert Fisher, of Long Acre, and was born about the time of the Restoration
Theodorick Bland (1629-1671), also known as Theodorick Bland of Westover, was a London-born, American settler to America in 1653, became a Virginia politician, merchant and planter; and his son, Theod...

Bland Ranking

In the United States, the name Bland is the 1,028^th most popular surname with an estimated 29,844 people with that name. 5 However, in the United Kingdom, the name Bland is ranked the 845^th most popular surname with an estimated 8,013 people with that name. 6

Migration of the Bland family to Ireland

Some of the Bland family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 89 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bland migration to the United States +

Thousands of English families in this era began to emigrate the New World in search of land and freedom from religious and political persecution. Although the passage was expensive and the ships were dark, crowded, and unsafe, those who made the voyage safely were rewarded with opportunities unavailable to them in their homeland. Research into passenger and immigration lists has revealed some of the very first Blands to arrive in North America:

Bland Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Edward Bland, who settled in Virginia in 1635
Jo Bland, aged 26, from Essex, who arrived in Virginia in 1635 aboard the ship "Globe", bound for Watertown 7
Luke Bland, aged 20, who arrived in Virginia in 1635 aboard the ship "Plain Joan" 7
Edward Bland, who arrived in Virginia in 1636 7
John Bland who settled in Sudbury, Massachusetts in 1641 where he married Joanna by whom he had two daughters
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Bland Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Thomas Bland, who arrived in Maryland in 1701 7
Theodorick Bland, who landed in Virginia in 1702 7
Joseph Bland, who landed in Virginia in 1702 7
E Bland, who landed in Georgia in 1735 7
William Bland, who arrived in Virginia in 1767 7

Bland Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Bland, aged 26, who landed in New York in 1812 7
Samuel Bland, aged 28, who landed in Maryland in 1812 7
Mr. Bland, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 7

Bland migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Bland Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mr. William Bland U.E. who settled in Eastern District [Cornwall], Ontario c. 1783 8

Bland migration to Australia +

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

Bland Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Daniel Bland, (b. 1767), aged 34, Irish convict who was convicted in Kilkenny, Ireland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Atlas" on 29th November 1801, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 9
Miss Isabella Bland, English convict who was convicted in Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Broxbournebury" in January 1814, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 10
William Bland (1789-1868), English physician and surgeon, politician, farmer and inventor who was convicted of murder, killing his opponent in a duel and transported to Van Damien's Land aboard the Denmark Hill in 1814; he rose to become a strong politician, eponym of Bland County New South Wales
Mr. Joseph Bland, English convict who was convicted in Lincolnshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Eliza" on 13th July 1822, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 11
Mary Ann Bland, English convict from Northumberland, who was transported aboard the "Amphitrite" on August 21, 1833, settling in New South Wales, Australia 12
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Bland migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Bland Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Joseph Napoleon Bland, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Eagle" in 1854 13
Jane Bland, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Eagle" in 1854 13
Mrs. Harriet Bland, (b. 1798), aged 60, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Maori" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 14th April 1858 14
Mr. William Bland, (b. 1800), aged 58, British cooper travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Maori" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 14th April 1858 14
Mrs. Elizabeth Bland, (b. 1816), aged 43, English settler from Durham travelling from London aboard the ship "Zealandia" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 14th November 1859 15
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Bland migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 16

Bland Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Anne Bland, who settled in Barbados in 1682

Contemporary Notables of the name Bland (post 1700) +

James A "Jimmy" Bland, American musician and song writer
Eleanor Taylor Bland (1944-2010), American writer of crime fiction
Jack Bland (1899-1968), American jazz banjoist and bandleader
Harriet Claiborne Bland (1915-1991), American gold medalist athlete a the 1936 Summer Olympics
Edward Osmund Bland (1926-2013), American composer and musical director
Carl Bland (b. 1961), American CFL former wide receiver who played from 1984 to 1990
Robert Calvin "Bobby" Bland (1930-2013), known professionally as Bobby "Blue" Bland, an American blues singer, inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1981, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992, the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2012, and received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997
Billy Bland (b. 1932), American R&B singer and songwriter
Richard Parks Bland, American statesman, member of the US House of Representatives
William R. Bland, American fighter pilot and flying ace in the U.S. Navy, during World War II, credited with 9 aerial victories
... (Another 57 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Bland family +

Halifax Explosion

Mr. Lancelot John Bland (1859-1917), Canadian resident from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who survived the Halifax Explosion (1917) but later died due to injuries 17

Hillsborough disaster

Anthony David "Tony" Bland (1970-1993), English labourer who was attending the FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough Stadium, in Sheffield, Yorkshire when the stand allocated area became overcrowded and 96 people were crushed in what became known as the Hillsborough disaster and he suffered serious injuries which left him on life support 18

The Bland 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: Sperate et virite fortes
Motto Translation: Hope and live boldly.

Citations +

Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
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)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/atlas
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 3rd November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/broxbournebury
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 15th February 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eliza
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Amphitrite voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1833 with 99 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/amphitrite/1833
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 4th November 2011). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Halifax Explosion Book of Remembrance | Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. (Retrieved 2014, June 23) . Retrieved from https://maritimemuseum.novascotia.ca/what-see-do/halifax-explosion/halifax-explosion-book-remembrance
Hillsborough Victims (retreived 21st March 2021). Retreived from https://metro.co.uk/2019/04/15/remembering-96-victims-hillsborough-disaster-30-years-9206566/