Dounbar History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland
Ireland

Behind the name Dounbar is a story that begins in the ancient Scottish-English border region among the clans of the Boernician tribe. The Dounbar family lived in the barony of Dunbar on the North Sea coast near Edinburgh. The place name comes from the Gaelic words dùn, meaning "a fort," and barr, meaning "top," or "summit."

Early Origins of the Dounbar family

The surname Dounbar was first found in the barony of Dunbar in the Lothians where they held a family seat from very ancient times; ever since the 11th century, when Cospatrick was deprived of his Earldom of Northumberland by William the Conqueror, and fled to Scotland.

There he was granted the lands of Dunbar and Lothian, Cumnock in Ayrshire, and Mochrum in Wigtown by Malcolm Ceanmore, the King of Scotland. Traditionally, the family descend from Crinan of Dunkeld, the Earl of Northumberland, ancestor of both King Duncan I (d. 1040) and the Earls Gospatrick, who were the later the Earls of March.

Of this line, Patrick V, Earl of March (c.1285-1369) gave English King Edward II sanctuary at the fortress of Dunbar Castle following the Battle of Bannockburn. He was one of the Scottish nobles, who signed, the declaration of Scottish independence to the Pope dated at Arbroath on 6 April 1320.

He was married to the infamous "Black Agnes," Agnes Dunbar, 4th Countess of Moray (1312-1369), "that brawling boisterous Scottish wench" as an English balladeer had called her. In the Earl's absence, she held Dunbar castle for several months before succumbing to the overwhelming English army in 1337. 1

Early History of the Dounbar family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dounbar research. Another 132 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1370, 1390, 1435, 1457, 1465, 1490, 1530, 1532, 1547, 1797 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Dounbar History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dounbar Spelling Variations

Before the printing press and the first dictionaries appeared, names and other words were often spelled differently every time they were written. Dounbar has appeared under the variations Dunbarr, Dumbar, Dumbare, Dumber, Dounber, Dunbar, Dounbar and many more.

Early Notables of the Dounbar family

Notable amongst the family name during their early history was John Dunbar, Earl of Moray (died 1390), a Scottish nobleman; William Dunbar (c.1465-1530), Scottish poet, Franciscan friar, and later became a diplomatic agent for James IV of Scotland, best known for "The Thrissil and the Rois," an allegory about marriage; Gavin Dunbar (died 1532), Bishop of Aberdeen; and his nephew, Gavin Dunbar (c. 1490-1547), Archbishop of Glasgow. He was the fourth son of Sir Alexander Dunbar of Westfield...
Another 77 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dounbar Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Dounbar family to Ireland

Some of the Dounbar family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 81 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Dounbar family

The Scots who crossed the Atlantic were often on the run from poverty as well as persecution. They brought little with them, and often had nothing of their home country to hand down to their children. In the 20th century, Clan societies and other patriotic Scottish organizations have helped the ancestors of Boernician Scots to recover their lost national legacy. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Dounbar were among those contributors: William Dunbarr, who arrived in St. Christopher in 1635; William Dunbar, who settled in Virginia in 1650; Alexander Dunbarr, who settled in Virginia in 1654.

The Dounbar 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: In promptu
Motto Translation: In readiness.

Citations +

Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print