Woodbeck History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland
Ireland

A Boernician family in ancient Scotland first used the name Woodbeck. They lived in any of a number of places of the same name in Ayrshire, Kincardine, and Midlothian. The place-name Woodbeck comes from the Old English words, wudu and burna, which mean wood and stream. The place-name referred to a stream which ran through the woods. The original bearer of the surname Woodbeck would have lived near such a stream.

Early Origins of the Woodbeck family

The surname Woodbeck was first found in Northumberland, where they held a family seat from very ancient times, before and after the Norman Conquest of 1066.

Early History of the Woodbeck family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Woodbeck research. Another 59 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1500, 1506 and 1685 are included under the topic Early Woodbeck History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Woodbeck Spelling Variations

Scribes in the Middle Ages simply spelled according to sound. The result is an enormous number of spelling variations among names that evolved in that era. Woodbeck has been spelled Woodburn, Woodburne, Woodbine, Woodbourne, Whiteburn and many more.

Early Notables of the Woodbeck family

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

Migration of the Woodbeck family to Ireland

Some of the Woodbeck 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 Woodbeck family

Most of the Boernician-Scottish families who came to North America settled on the eastern seaboard of what would become the United States and Canada. Families who wanted a new order stayed south in the War of Independence, while those who were still loyal to the crown went north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. In the 20th century, the ancestors of these families have gone on to rediscover their heritage through Clan societies and other patriotic Scottish organizations. Research into the origins of individual families in North America has revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Woodbeck or a variant listed above: Mary Woodburne, who came to in Virginia in 1685 with her husband; as well as James W. Robert and William Woodburn, who both arrived in Philadelphia between 1864-1878..