The Earnshay name has descended through the generations from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. Their name comes from having lived in or near a woods where golden eagles lived. Earnshay is a compound of the Old English words earn and sceaga.Earn was the Old English name for the golden eagles, and sceaga was a word that meant forest or wilderness. The original bearer of this name must have lived in or near a woods noted for its eagle population. Interestingly, the modern word erne is the name of the sea eagle, a related but separate species of bird to the golden eagle. Golden eagles are very rare in the British Isles today, but in the Middle Ages they were a common bird of prey. Their range was in the northern part of the island, and they were particularly fond of mountainous terrain. Most golden eagles were found in the Pennines and in the Scottish Highlands.
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Early Origins of the Earnshay family
The surname Earnshay was first found in Yorkshire where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.
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Early History of the Earnshay family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Earnshay research. Another 92 words (7 lines of text) covering the year 1316 is included under the topic Early Earnshay History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Earnshay Spelling Variations
Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Earnshay has undergone many spelling variations, including Earnshaw, Earnshawe, Ernshaw, Earnshay and others.
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Early Notables of the Earnshay family
More information is included under the topic Early Earnshay Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Migration of the Earnshay family
To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. 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 Earnshay were among those contributors: Mary, Anna, and Ann Ernshaw who arrived in Philadelphia in 1820; Eli Earnshaw arrived in Philadelphia in 1848; Francis, George, and Lewis Earnshaw arrived in Philadelphia in 1860.
England
