Show ContentsEdgington History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The lineage of the name Edgington begins with the Anglo-Saxon tribes in Britain. It is a result of when they lived in Eddington or Edington, places found in Berkshire, Northumberland, Somerset and Wiltshire. The place-name is derived from the old English personal name Eadwynn or Eatha, and tun, a suffix denoting enclosure, farm, settlement, or town. [1]

Early Origins of the Edgington family

The surname Edgington was first found in Northumberland and later in Berwickshire where the old barony so named was located in the parish of Chirnside. [2] Edrington is a medieval estate which dates back to at least the 14th century located in the lower part of Mordington parish in Berwickshire.

One of the first records of the family was William Edington (died 1366), the English bishop and administrator. He served as Bishop of Winchester from 1346 until his death, Keeper of the Wardrobe (1341-1344), Treasurer (1344-1356), and lastly Chancellor from 1356 to 1363. He founded the Edington Priory in Wiltshire and starting the extensive rebuilding of Winchester Cathedral. [3]

Sir Robert de Lawedre of Edrington (died 1425) was a Burgess of Edinburgh and a confidant of King Robert III and guardian of his son, the future James I of Scotland. Edington is a parish in the union of Westbury and Whorwelsdown, hundred of Whorwelsdown in Wiltshire. "The bishops of Salisbury had a palace here, which was plundered and destroyed during the rebellion of Jack Cade, in 1450, when Bishop Ayscough was dragged from the altar of his chapel, where he was officiating at mass, and stoned to death on a neighbouring hill." [4]

Erdington in Warwickshire was another ancient family seat. "The manor originally belonged to the earls of Mercia, and was given at the time of the Conquest to William Fitz-Ausculf, from whose descendants it passed in the reign of John to Thomas de Erdington, that monarch's ambassador to the court of Spain, by whose family the ancient manor-house, now Erdington Hall, was built." [4]

Early History of the Edgington family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Edgington research. Another 166 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1100, 1296, 1341, 1344, 1346, 1356, 1366, 1479, 1594 and 1850 are included under the topic Early Edgington History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Edgington 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 Edgington has undergone many spelling variations, including Eddington, Edington, Edlington, Erdington, Eddingtone and many more.

Early Notables of the Edgington family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Sir Henri Erdington; and William Edington (died 1366), Bishop of Winchester from 1346 until his death, Keeper of the wardrobe from...
Another 28 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Edgington Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Edgington Ranking

In the United States, the name Edgington is the 9,979th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. [5]


United States Edgington migration to the United States +

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 Edgington were among those contributors:

Edgington Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • William Edgington, aged 2, who landed in America from Liverpool, in 1902
  • Harry Edgington, aged 22, who immigrated to the United States from Birmingham, England, in 1909
  • Alice Maud Edgington, aged 27, who landed in America from Haywards Heath, England, in 1913
  • Richard Reed Edgington, aged 24, who settled in America from Devonport, England, in 1923

Canada Edgington migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Edgington Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century
  • Henry Edgington, aged 25, who immigrated to Toronto, Canada, in 1907

Australia Edgington migration to Australia +

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

Edgington Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Joseph Edgington, English convict who was convicted in Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Eliza" on 2nd February 1831, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) [6]

Contemporary Notables of the name Edgington (post 1700) +

  • Jesse Edgington, American politician, Delegate to Whig National Convention from Virginia, 1839 [7]
  • Daniel Edgington, American Democratic Party politician, Postmaster at Kansas City, Missouri, 1854-55 [7]
  • Dorothy Edgington, British philosopher active in metaphysics and philosophical logic


  1. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  2. 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)
  3. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  4. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  5. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  6. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 28th February 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eliza
  7. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 29) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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