Putnins History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Putnins is a name whose history is connected to the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the Putnins family once lived in Puttenham, a place-name found in the counties of Hertfordshire and Surrey. 1 2 Both place-names have an identical etymology. They are derived from the Old English word ham, which means farm, and either the Old English personal name Putta, or the Old English word putta, which means hawk. The place-name taken as a whole means "farm belonging to Putta," or "farm where there are hawks." 3

Early Origins of the Putnins family

The surname Putnins was first found in Hertfordshire at Puttenham, a small village and parish, in the union of Berkhampstead, hundred of Dacorum. 4 The parish is listed as Puteham in the Domesday Book of 1086. 5 1

Puttenham, Surrey is another parish in the First division of the hundred of Godalming. 4 The first record of this local was in 1199 when it was listed as Puteham. 3

Puttenham Priory is a large house at the eastern end of the village and dates back to 1266. St John the Baptist church "occupies a picturesque situation close to the mansion of Puttenham Priory, is in the later English style, and contains some ancient brasses." 4

One of the first records of the family was Ralph de Puteham who was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls of 1205 for Berkshire. 6Later we found Richard de Puteham in Buckinghamshire in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. 7

Early History of the Putnins family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Putnins research. Another 92 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1520, 1529, 1588, 1589, 1590, 1601, 1615, 1621, 1651, 1679, 1686, 1692, 1699, 1716 and 1774 are included under the topic Early Putnins History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Putnins Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Putnins family name include Puttenham, Putnam, Putman and others.

Early Notables of the Putnins family

Notables of this surname at this time include: George Puttenham (1529-1590), English writer who is the reputed author of "The Arte of English Poesie" (1589). His brother Richard Puttenham (1520?-1601?) has also been credited as the author of the same source. The issue is that the publication was issued anonymously in 1589. "The full title ran: 'The Arte of English Poesie, contrived into three bookes; the first of Poets and Poesie, the second of Proportion, the third of Ornament,' London, by Richard Field, 1589. It was licensed to Thomas Orwin on 9 Nov. 1588, and Orwin transferred it to Richard Field...
Another 143 words (10 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Putnins Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Putnins family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Putnins surname or a spelling variation of the name include: John Putnam, who settled in Salem in 1630; A. M. G.F. H.W. J. Putnam arrived in San Francisco in 1850; David Putnam settled in Boston in 1820; Amy Putman was banished to Barbados in 1685.

Contemporary Notables of the name Putnins (post 1700) +

Maris Putnins (1951-2024), Latvian artist, screenwriter and producer

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)