Moneypeney History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• England

Etymology of Moneypeney

Moneypeney is one of the many names that the Normans brought with them when they conquered England in 1066. The Moneypeney family lived in Fife. Moneypenny is a compound name composed of two elements, the Old English moning, meaning money, and the Old English pening, meaning penny. Moneypenny originated as a nickname to identify a rich man or may have been ironically used to describe a poor man. Another derivation, which is equally valid in certain cases, indicates that Moneypenny is a local name adapted from the place called Magnepeigne in Normandy.

Early Origins of the Moneypeney family

Early History of the Moneypeney family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Moneypeney research. Another 99 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1180, 1200, 1296, 1450, 1617 and 1620 are included under the topic Early Moneypeney History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Moneypeney Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Moneypenny, Manypenny, Monypenny and others.

Early Notables of the Moneypeney family

Another 33 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Moneypeney Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Moneypeney family

Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Moneypeney name or one of its variants: Clemens Moneypenny settled in Pennsylvania in 1773.