Edminston History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland
England

The name Edminston comes from the Scottish/English Borderlands and the ancient Boernicians who inhabited them. It is derived from the personal name Edmond. Edminston is a patronymic surname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames. Many patronyms were formed by a son using his father's personal name as a surname. Others were taken from the names of important religious and secular figures. Members of the Edminston family settled in Scotland, just following the Norman Conquest of England, in 1066.

Early Origins of the Edminston family

The surname Edminston was first found in Edinburghshire, a former county, now part of the Midlothian council area where they held a family seat from very early times and were granted lands by Queen Margaret of Scotland. They take their name from the place name Edmondstone, the tun of Eadmund, near Edinburgh. The name may have been derived from Aedmund filius Forn, one of the witnesses to a charter by Thor filius Swani (c. 1150)1

Early History of the Edminston family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Edminston research. Another 163 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1070, 1560, 1607, 1622, 1627, 1640, 1654, 1659 and 1712 are included under the topic Early Edminston History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Edminston Spelling Variations

A lack of rules and the tendency of scribes to spell according to the sound of the word plagued medieval spelling. Not surprisingly, an enormous number of spelling variations appeared. Edminston has been written Edmondson, Edmonson, Edminson, Edminston, Edmiston, Edmeston, Edmondon and many more.

Early Notables of the Edminston family

Notable among the family at this time was Henry Edmondson (1607-1659), an English schoolmaster, entered Queen's College, Oxford in 1622 aged 15. William Edmundson (1627-1712), was an English Quaker whose father was a wealthy yeoman, was born...
Another 36 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Edminston Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Edminston family to Ireland

Some of the Edminston family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 91 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Edminston migration to the United States +

Many Scots crossed the Atlantic for North America hoping to escape poverty, as well as persecution. Much of their heritage was lost along the way and overtime. This century, however, Clan societies and highland games have allowed many ancestral Scots to recover their birthright. An examination of many early immigration records reveals that people bearing the name Edminston arrived in North America very early:

Edminston Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Margaret Edminston, aged 17, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1864 2

The Edminston 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: Virtus auget honorem
Motto Translation: Virtue increases honour.

Citations +

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)
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)