Chaplain History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
France

The Chaplain name was coined by the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. Chaplain was originally a name given to someone who worked as a chaplain, the minister of a sanctuary or church. The name is derived from the Latin word capellanus 1

Early Origins of the Chaplain family

The surname Chaplain was first found in Hampshire where the oldest record of the name was Albert Chapelain, who was listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as a tenant in chief and the king's chaplain. 1

Early History of the Chaplain family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Chaplain research. Another 196 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1559, 1591, 1598, 1634, 1659, 1660, 1672, 1675, 1677 and 1696 are included under the topic Early Chaplain History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Chaplain Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, early Anglo-Saxon surnames like Chaplain are characterized by many spelling variations. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages, even literate people changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Chaplain include: Chaplin, Chaplins, Chapline, Chaplyn, Cheplain, Chaplain, Chaiplin, Caplin, Caplines, Keplaine and many more.

Early Notables of the Chaplain family

Notables of the family at this time include Sir Francis Chaplin; Thomas Chaplin (1591-1672), an English draper and politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1659 and 1660; and Samuel...
Another 31 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Chaplain Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Chaplain Ranking

In France, the name Chaplain is the 5,710^th most popular surname with an estimated 1,000 - 1,500 people with that name. 2

Chaplain migration to the United States +

Many English families tired of political and religious strife left Britain for the new colonies in North America. Although the trip itself offered no relief - conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and many travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute - these immigrants believed the opportunities that awaited them were worth the risks. Once in the colonies, many of the families did indeed prosper and, in turn, made significant contributions to the culture and economies of the growing colonies. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families has revealed a number of immigrants bearing the name Chaplain or a variant listed above:

Chaplain Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Clement Chaplain, who landed in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1635 3
Annie Chaplain, who arrived in Maryland in 1669 3

Chaplain 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:

Chaplain Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. John Chaplain, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Palmyra" arriving in Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 19th February 1858 4
Mrs. Ellen Chaplain, South African settler travelling from Cape Town aboard the ship "Eveline" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 22nd January 1865 5
Mr. Jessie Chaplain, South African settler travelling from Cape Town aboard the ship "Eveline" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 22nd January 1865 5
Mr. William Chaplain, South African settler travelling from Cape Town aboard the ship "Eveline" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 22nd January 1865 5
Mr. Alexander Chaplain, South African settler travelling from Cape Town aboard the ship "Eveline" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 22nd January 1865 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Chaplain (post 1700) +

Sylvia Chaplain, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New Hampshire, 1972 6
Chaplain Colonel John Thomas Axton (1870-1934), American Army officer, the First Chief of Chaplains of the United States Army (1920 to 1928)
Chaplain J W Muggoch, Scottish army captain, listed in the honour roll of those of the University of Glasgow, who lost their lives in WWI

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
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)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). 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
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 3) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html