Espaigne History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Family Crest Image (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Early Origins of the Espaigne family

The surname Espaigne was first found in Somerset where Alfred d'Espagne was a great Norman Baron, brother of Roger Toeni, from Eespagne, Pont Audemer who was granted twenty lordships in Somerset. The parish of Willingale- Spain "derives the adjunct to its name from the family of Hervey de Spain, to whom it belonged at the time of the Norman survey." ^[1]

Important Dates for the Espaigne family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Espaigne research. Another 38 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Espaigne History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Espaigne Spelling Variations

Multitudes of spelling variations are a hallmark of Anglo Norman names. Most of these names evolved in the 11th and 12th century, in the time after the Normans introduced their own Norman French language into a country where Old and Middle English had no spelling rules and the languages of the court were French and Latin. To make matters worse, medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, so names frequently appeared differently in the various documents in which they were recorded. The name was spelled Espaigne, Espayne, Espain, Espaine, Espinay, Espineto, Espiney, Epinay, Spineto, Espagne, Lespagnol, Lespagnou, Lespagneau, Lespagnol, Lepagneux and many more.

Early Notables of the Espaigne family (pre 1700)

More information is included under the topic Early Espaigne Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Espaigne family

Because of this political and religious unrest within English society, many people decided to immigrate to the colonies. Families left for Ireland, North America, and Australia in enormous numbers, traveling at high cost in extremely inhospitable conditions. The New World in particular was a desirable destination, but the long voyage caused many to arrive sick and starving. Those who made it, though, were welcomed by opportunities far greater than they had known at home in England. Many of these families went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Espaigne or a variant listed above: bearers of the name who came to North America from the mid 17th century in the great migration from Europe. Migrants settled in the eastern seaboard from Newfoundland, to Maine, to Virginia, the Carolinas, and to the islands..