Show ContentsAislabie History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Aislabie family

The surname Aislabie was first found in North Yorkshire at Aislaby, a hamlet and civil parish near the town of Pickering. The place name dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was listed as Asuluesbi. 1

The place name literally means "farmstead or village of a man called Asulfr," from the Old Scandinavian personal name + "by." 2

"There was anciently a chapel dedicated to St. Thomas the Martyr, which was founded by William de Aslakby (now Aislaby) and Agnes his wife, in 1313." 3

Aislaby is also a village and civil parish in the Scarborough district and finally Aislaby is a small village and civil parish on the north bank of the River Tees within the borough of Stockton-on-Tees in County Durham. Conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands and village of Aislaby, held by Richard Surdeval, a Norman noble, who was recorded in the Domesday Book.

Early History of the Aislabie family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Aislabie research. Another 167 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1379, 1487, 1510, 1564, 1600, 1670, 1674, 1699 and 1742 are included under the topic Early Aislabie History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Aislabie 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 Aislaby, Aislakby, Aislackby, Aslakeby, Aislabie, Aslaby and many more.

Early Notables of the Aislabie family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

  • John Aislabie (1670-1742), English statesman and politician, was baptised at Holy Trinity Church, Goodramgate, York, 7 Dec...
  • On the death of his eldest surviving brother, George, in 1699, John Aislabie succeeded to the Studley Royal estates, which had come into the possession of the family through his father's second marria...

Migration of the Aislabie 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 Aislabie name or one of its variants: John Aislabee, who settled in Massachusetts in 1692.



  1. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  2. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  3. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.


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