Contents [hide]

Halls History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Halls History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland
Ireland

The first bearers of the distinguished surname Halls came to England in the great wave of migration that followed the Norman Conquest of 1066. The name is occupational in origin, stemming from the primary activity of the bearer. It is derived from the Old French term "halle," which referred to a large manor house, which indicates that the original bearer of the name worked at the manor of the local Lord in some role such as a servant or chamberlain. 1 2 3

Many of the Norman noblemen who came to England with William the Conqueror soon grew dissatisfied with William's rule; as such, members of the Halls family accepted land grants from King Malcolm Canmore of Scotland, and became prominent in that country.

Early Origins of the Halls family

The surname Halls was first found in Lincolnshire, England, where the family was granted lands after the Norman Conquest in 1066. The Halls family is directly descended from Earl Fitzwilliam, who held a family seat at Greatford Hall in Lincolnshire, after the Norman Conquest.

The younger son of this noble house, Arthur FitzWilliam, came to be known as "Hall" so as to distinguish him from his senior brother. Hence, Arthur Hall was the first known bearer of the name, appearing on record about the year 1090. 4

In Scotland, the name in Latin was de Aula and accordingly, the first record here was "Waldeu de Aula who witnessed a charter by Walter de Veteri Ponte a. 1200." 5

Over one hundred years later the English version of the name was in use as "John of the Hall was one of an inquest made at Berwick, 1302 and c. 1311 Thomas dictus del Halle witnessed resignation by Adam de Dowane of his land of Grenryg in the barony of Lesmahagow." 5

During this period, Latin and English for records was in use as about the same time as the last entries, we found "in 1325 mention is made of Thomas dictus de Aula, and Andreas de Aula held land in Aynstrother c. 1330. The first Hall of Fulbar in Renfrewshire was Thomas de Aula, surgeon, who for his faithful service obtained from Robert II a grant of land in the tenement of Staneley, barony of Renffrow, 1370." 5

Early History of the Halls family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Halls research. Another 232 words (17 lines of text) covering the years 1340, 1376, 1400, 1423, 1426, 1454, 1456, 1463, 1470, 1485, 1550, 1574, 1581, 1600, 1610, 1613, 1619, 1620, 1627, 1637, 1646, 1654, 1656, 1657, 1660, 1661, 1662, 1664, 1665, 1667, 1668, 1669, 1672, 1674, 1687, 1688, 1690, 1715, 1716, 1730, 1776 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Halls History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Halls Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Hall, Halle, Haule, Haul, Hal, De Aule and others.

Early Notables of the Halls family

Notable among the family at this time was John Hall, known as "Mad Jack Hall" and "Crazy Jack Hall" (1672-1716), a Scottish Jacobite leader, property owner and a Justice of Peace in Northumberland, a major figure during the First Scottish Uprising in the Jacobite Rebellion of 1715, he was beheaded for high treason on 13 July 1716; and Lyman Hall of Georgia, one of the signers of the American Declaration of Independence on 4 July 1776. In England, Joseph Hall (1574-1656), was an English bishop, satirist and moralist; George Hall (c.1613-1668), an English Bishop...
Another 93 words (7 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Halls Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Halls Ranking

In the United States, the name Halls is the 10,070^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 6

Migration of the Halls family to Ireland

Some of the Halls family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 77 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Halls migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Halls Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Thomas Halls, who arrived in Virginia in 1652 7
Samuel Halls, who landed in Maryland in 1662 7
Margaret Halls, who landed in Maryland in 1672 7
John Halls, who arrived in Maryland in 1673 7

Halls Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Purbick Halls, who arrived in Virginia in 1717 7

Halls Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Oloff O Halls, who arrived in Wisconsin, Maryland in 1867 7

Halls Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Henry Halls, who landed in Arkansas in 1900 7

Halls migration to Australia +

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

Halls Settlers in Australia in the 18th Century

Mr. William Halls, English convict who was convicted in Norfolk, England for life, transported aboard the "Barwell" in September 1797, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8

Halls Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Halls, English convict who was convicted in Essex, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Elizabeth" in May 1816, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 9
Mr. John Halls, (b. 1803), aged 30 born in St. Agnes, Cornwall, UK convicted in Bodmin on 2nd July 1833, sentenced for life for stealing a cart and cow, transported aboard the ship "Moffatt" in 1834 to Van Diemen's Land, Tasmania, Australia 10
Mr. John Halls (b. 1803), aged 30, Cornish settler convicted in Cornwall, UK on 2nd July 1833, sentenced for life for stealing a cart, a pair of shafts, an axle tree, and cartwheels from John Tremain, transported aboard the ship "Moffatt" on 4th January 1834 to Van Diemen's Land, Tasmania, Australia 11
Mr. William Halls, English convict who was convicted in Essex, England for life, transported aboard the "Emma Eugenia" on 2nd November 1837, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 12
James Halls, who arrived in Holdfast Bay, Australia aboard the ship "Brightman" in 1840 13
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Halls migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

John Halls, aged 23, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Phoebe Dunbar" between 1841 and 1850
Ralph Clement Halls, aged 18, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Phoebe Dunbar" between 1841 and 1850

Halls Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

John Halls, aged 23, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Phoebe Dunbar" in 1850
Ralph Clement Halls, aged 18, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Phoebe Dunbar" in 1850
Joseph Halls, aged 21, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Schiehallion" in 1872
William H. Halls, aged 20, who arrived in Lyttelton, New Zealand aboard the ship "Blairgowrie" in 1875
Emily Halls, aged 20, who arrived in Lyttelton, New Zealand aboard the ship "Blairgowrie" in 1875

Contemporary Notables of the name Halls (post 1700) +

Mr. Walter Halls, British alderman, held the position of Sheriff of Nottingham, England from 1937 to 1938, he was Lord Mayor in 1940
John James Halls (1791-1834), English painter, a native of Colchester, was Christened by his father after Jean-Jacques Rousseau 14
Evelyn Halls (b. 1972), Australian fencer at the 2000 and 2004 Summer Olympics
Jo Halls (b. 1973), Australian fencer at the 2000 and 2008 Summer Olympics
Andrew Thomas "Andy" Halls (b. 1992), English footballer who has played since 2009
John Halls (b. 1982), former English footballer who played from 2000 to 2012

Historic Events for the Halls family +

HMS Hood

Mr. Wilfred C Halls (b. 1917), English Ordinary Signalman serving for the Royal Navy from Brightlingsea, Essex, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 15

HMS Repulse

Mr. John William Halls, British Stoker 2ne Class, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and survived the sinking 16

Citations +

Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
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)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 29th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/barwell
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 1st March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elizabeth
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 30th May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/tasmanian_convicts_cornish.pdf
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 30th May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_australia_convicts.pdf
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 29th March 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/emma-eugenia
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) BRIGHTMAN 1840. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1840Brightman.htm
Wikisource contributors. "Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900." Wikisource . Wikisource , 4 Jun. 2018. Web. 30 June 2020
H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm
HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html