Comings History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland
Ireland

It is generally believed that this name comes from a Breton personal name, derived from element "cam," meaning "bent," or "crooked;" or perhaps from the herb called "cummin" (cumin).

Or the name may have come from the place name Comines, in Northern France, bordering the Belgium border. Regarding this latter scenario, multiple sources agree with this postulation, but all include wording similar to "there is no positive evidence in favor of this view." 1 2 3

Early Origins of the Comings family

The surname Comings was first found in Norfolk, Lincolnshire, and Yorkshire in England, in the 12th and 13th centuries. Robert of Comyn (Comines,) (died 1069) was a noble who accompanied William the Conqueror and was made Earl of Northumberland. "He so commended himself to the king by his military skill that he was chosen at the end of 1068 for the difficult task of reducing the north of England to obedience. William I conferred on him the earldom of Northumberland, vacant by the flight of Gospatric. Comin was the founder of the family of Comyn, many of whom played an important part in the history of Scotland." 4

"The first of the name connected with Scotland is Willelmus Comyn, a churchman, chancellor to David I. He was promoted to the bishopric of Durham by the Empress Matilda, but had many controversies with his clergy. Later he was poisoned by some of their number who mixed poison with the wine of the Sacrament and give it to him to drink. Richard Cumyn, second of the name in Scotland, made a gift of the church of Lyntun-ruderic (Linton-Roderick) to the Abbey of Kelso for the weal of the souls of Earl Henry (d. 1152) and his own son, John. He also witnessed charters by William the Lion after 1165 (REM., I, 2). By his marriage with Hextilda, granddaughter of Donald Bane, king of Scots, he had a son, William, who became chancellor and great justiciary of Scotland. William married Marjory, daughter and heiress of Fergus, the last Celtic earl of Buchan between 1211-1224, and in right of his wife became earl of Buchan. " 2

John Comyn (d. 1212), was Archbishop of Dublin and was in his early life a trusted official and chaplain of Henry II.

Later, John Comyn (Cumyn) (c. 1215-1275) was Lord of Badenoch in Scotland and justiciar of Galloway in 1258. He founded and started the construction of Blair Castle with a tower in 1269. He was nephew of Alexander Comyn, Earl of Buchan, Constable of Scotland, and of Walter Comyn, Earl of Mentieth. 4

Alexander Comyn, 2nd Earl of Buchan (d. 1289), was Constable of Scotland, "the son of William Comyn, Earl of Buchan, the founder of Deer Abbey, and of Marjory, his second wife, who brought the title into the Comyn family. " 4

John Comyn the Elder (d. 1300?), of Badenoch, was 'claimant to the Scottish throne,' and was the second son of John Comyn, Justiciar of Galloway. His lordship of Badenoch came from his uncle, Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith. 4

His son, John Comyn the younger (d. 1306), of Badenoch, surnamed The Red, was one of the competitors for the crown of Scotland in 1291. 4

Early History of the Comings family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Comings research. Another 456 words (33 lines of text) covering the years 1124, 1133, 1150, 1153, 1180, 1189, 1212, 1258, 1263, 1264, 1266, 1274, 1275, 1286, 1289, 1296, 1300, 1302, 1306 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Comings History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Comings Spelling Variations

Medieval translation of Gaelic names could not be referred to as an accurate process. Spelling was not yet standardized, and names in documents from that era are riddled with spelling variations. Comings has been written as Cumin, Cumins, Cumine, Cummin, Cummins, Cummine, Comings, Comins, Commin and many more.

Early Notables of the Comings family

Notable among the family at this time was John Comyn (died 1274), was justiciar of Galloway, the son of Richard Comyn and nephew of the powerful Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith. His son John Comyn the Elder (died 1300), of Badenoch, 'claimant to the Scottish throne,' was the second son of John Comyn, justiciar of Galloway. Alexander Comyn (d. 1289)...
Another 60 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Comings Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Comings family to Ireland

Some of the Comings family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 142 words (10 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Comings migration to the United States +

The descendants of the Dalriadan families who made the great crossing of the Atlantic still dot communities along the east coast of the United States and Canada. In the American War of Independence, many of the settlers traveled north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. Clan societies and highland games have allowed Canadian and American families of Scottish descent to recover much of their lost heritage. Investigation of the origins of family names on the North American continent has revealed that early immigrants bearing the name Comings or a variant listed above include:

Comings Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Nicholas Comings, who landed in Virginia in 1639 5
John Comings, who landed in Virginia in 1657 5
Mary Comings, who arrived in Virginia in 1657 5

Comings Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

William Comings, who arrived in Boston, Massachusetts in 1766 5
William Comings, who settled in Boston in 1766

Contemporary Notables of the name Comings (post 1700) +

Herbert C. Comings (b. 1863), American Democratic Party politician, Member of Vermont State House of Representatives, 1898-1900; U.S. Collector of Customs, 1914-23; Candidate for Presidential Elector for Vermont, 1920 6
Herbert Bowen Comings (b. 1891), American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Vermont, 1940; Candidate for U.S. Senator from Vermont, 1940 6
Herbert B. Comings Jr., American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Vermont, 1944 6
George F. Comings, American Republican politician, Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin, 1921-25 6
George Comings, American politician, Candidate for New York State Assembly from Chenango County, 1934 6
Charles A. Comings, American Democratic Party politician, Mayor of Flint, Michigan, 1900-01 6

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
Burke, John Bernard, The Roll of Battle Abbey. London: Edward Churton, 26, Holles Street, 1848, Print.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 12) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html