Ringwod History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The name Ringwod reached English shores for the first time with the ancestors of the Ringwod family as they migrated following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Ringwod family lived at Ringwood, in Hampshire. Since in Old English the word hring meant both circle and boundary, it is thought that the name of this place indicated was a reference to the edge of a forest.

Early Origins of the Ringwod family

The surname Ringwod was first found in Hampshire where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor of Ringwood. At the time of the taking of the Domesday Book in the year 1086, a survey of England initiated by Duke William of Normandy after his Conquest of England at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 A.D., Ringwood was held as King's land and the holder is not named. As was the Norman custom the second son of the Norman holder of the land assumed the name of the Manor and village. In 1086, the village held two mills.

Early History of the Ringwod family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ringwod research. Another 75 words (5 lines of text) covering the year 1685 is included under the topic Early Ringwod History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ringwod 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 Ringwood, Ringewood, Ringwode and others.

Early Notables of the Ringwod family

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

Migration of the Ringwod family to Ireland

Some of the Ringwod family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Ringwod 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 Ringwod name or one of its variants: Robert Ringwood who landed in North America in 1753.