Show ContentsWardel History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Wardel is a name of ancient Norman origin. It arrived in England with the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Wardel family lived in Cheshire, at the village of Wardle.

Early Origins of the Wardel family

The surname Wardel was first found in Cheshire at Wardle, a township, in the parish of Bunbury, union of Nantwich, first division of the hundred of Eddisbury. [1] The township dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was first listed as Warhelle. [2] By 1184, the village was known as Wardle. Literally the place name means "watch or look-out hill," from the Old English words "weard" + "hyll." [3] There is also a village named Wardle in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester and this village dates back to c. 1193 when it was first listed as Wardhul. Some of the first records of the family appeared in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, specifically: Richard de Wardle in Lincolnshire; and Nicholas de Werdhyl in Lancashire. The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list Johannes de Wardale. [4] Up in Scotland, the name was "of local origin, probably from Wartle in the parish of Lumphanan" [5] in Aberdeen. This latter reference was in 1696, hundreds of years after the aforementioned English listings.

Early History of the Wardel family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wardel research. Another 66 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1634, 1683, 1684 and 1710 are included under the topic Early Wardel History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wardel 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 Wardel 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 Wardel include Wardle, Wardell and others.

Early Notables of the Wardel family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

  • Eliakim Wardell (c. 1634-c...

Migration of the Wardel 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 Wardel, or a variant listed above: Christopher Wardle who settled in Barbados in 1679 with his servants; William Wardle arrived in Pennsylvania in 1685; Thomas Wardle arrived in Philadelphia in 1818..



  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  2. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  3. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  4. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  5. 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)


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