Show ContentsFillingley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Fillingley family

The surname Fillingley was first found in Lincolnshire where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor. The Norman influence of English history prevailed after the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The language of the courts was French for the next three centuries and the Norman ambience prevailed. The family name was first referenced in the year 1172 when Alan of Fillingham succeeded to the estates in that county. He was probably descended from the Domesday Book tenant taken in 1086 of the lands and village of Fillingham, Anschitil from Roger de Poitou, a Norman Baron.

Early History of the Fillingley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Fillingley research. Another 90 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1298, 1455 and 1487 are included under the topic Early Fillingley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Fillingley Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, Anglo-Norman surnames like Fillingley are characterized by many spelling variations. Scribes and monks in the Middle Ages spelled names they sounded, so it is common to find several variations that refer to a single person. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages such as Norman French and Latin, even literate people regularly changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Fillingley include Fillingham, Fillingworth, Fillesworth, Fillingley, Fillenworth, Fillenwarth, Fillingwarth, Fillinham and many more.

Early Notables of the Fillingley family

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

Migration of the Fillingley family

Faced with the chaos present in England at that time, many English families looked towards the open frontiers of the New World with its opportunities to escape oppression and starvation. People migrated to North America, as well as Australia and Ireland in droves, paying exorbitant rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, but those who did see the shores of North America were welcomed with great opportunity. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America carried the name Fillingley, or a variant listed above: the name represented in many forms and recorded 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..



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