Show ContentsAllin History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Allin Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Etymology of Allin

What does the name Allin mean?

The ancient surname Allin came from the given name Alan, which is thought to mean "little rock" or "headstone." The name was popular among the Breton followers of William the Conqueror due to St. Alan, a 5th-century bishop from Quimper, Brittany; during the Middle Ages, parents often named their children after saints in the hope that the child would be blessed or protected by the saint.

Early Origins of the Allin family

The surname Allin was first found in the lands of Shropshire, where Walter FitzAlan of Brittany held a family seat after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The parish of Mileham, Norfolk is of early significance to the family. "This place, at the time of the Conquest, was given to Alan, son of Flaald, and ancestor of the Fitz-Alans, earls of Arundel, who erected a strong castle here, of which some vestiges may still be traced, within the area of an intrenchment of twelve acres; the site of the keep is pointed out by an inner intrenchment by which it was surrounded." 1

Alain de Lille (1114-1203), was "one of the most illustrious scholars of his age, and for his attainments in theology, philosophy, history, poetry, and natural science, acquired the designation of 'Doctor universalis.' His nationality has not been ascertained with unquestioned accuracy. " 2

Alan of Beccles (d. 1240) was official secretary to Bishops Pandulf and Thomas de Blundeville of Norwich between the years 1218 and 1236 and Alan of Tewkesbury, was a writer of the twelfth century, according to the express statement of Gervase of Canterbury, an Englishman by descent. 2

Early History of the Allin family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Allin research. Another 115 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1296, 1430, 1457, 1532, 1583, 1594, 1596, 1608, 1610, 1611, 1612, 1614, 1621, 1634, 1635, 1637, 1658, 1660, 1661, 1663, 1668, 1671, 1673, 1677, 1681, 1685, 1686, 1692, 1694, 1700, 1705, 1717, 1726, 1738, 1764, 1789 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Allin History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Allin Spelling Variations

Since the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules, Breton surnames have many spelling variations. Latin and French, which were the official court languages, were also influential on the spelling of surnames. The spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules. Therefore, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England after the Norman Conquest, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. The name has been spelled Alan, Allan, Allen, Alleyn, Allayne, Allaine, Allain, Allanach, Allanshaw, MacAllan and many more.

Early Notables of the Allin family

  • William Allen (1532-1594), an English prelate; Francis Allen (ca.1583-1658), an English financier, politician and regicide who sided with parliament in the civil War against Charles I; John Allen, or...

Migration of the Allin family to Ireland

Some of the Allin family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 127 words (9 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Allin migration to the United States +

Early immigration records have shown some of the first of the name Allin to arrive on North American shores were:

Allin Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Mr. James Allin, (b. 1616), aged 19, British settler traveling aboard the ship "Safety" arriving in Virginia in 1635 3
  • Miss Joan Allin, (b. 1615), aged 20, British settler traveling aboard the ship "Safety" arriving in Virginia in 1635 3
  • Mr. Richard Allin, (b. 1603), aged 32, British settler traveling aboard the ship "Safety" arriving in Virginia in 1635 3
  • Mr. Thomas Allin, aged 22, who arrived in Barbados aboard the ship "Falcon" in 1635 4
  • Gregorie Allin, aged 17, who landed in Virginia in 1635 aboard the ship "Globe" 4
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Allin Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • William Allin, who landed in Virginia in 1702 5

Allin migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 6
Allin Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Mr. John Allin, (b. 1611), aged 23, British settler travelling from London, UK arriving in St Christopher (St. Kitts) on 5th January 1634 5
  • Mr. William Allin, (b. 1609), aged 25, British settler travelling from Gravesend, UK aboard the ship "Hopewell" arriving in Barbados on 17th February 1634 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Allin (post 1700) +

  • Roger Allin (1848-1936), American politician, 4th Governor of North Dakota (1895-1897)
  • Merle Allin (b. 1953), American bassist, elder brother of GG Allin
  • Kevin Michael "GG" Allin (1956-1993), American punk rock singer-songwriter and musician
  • Brian "Buddy" Allin (1944-2007), American golfer who won five PGA Tour events in the 1970s
  • Brigadier-General George R. Allin (1880-1956), American Commandant of the Field Artillery School (1941-1942) 7
  • Thomas William Allin (1987-2016), English cricketer who played for Warwickshire County Cricket Club (2011-2013)
  • Norman Allin CBE (1884-1973), British bass singer, born in Ashton-under-Lyne
  • John Maury Allin, Episcopal Clergyman, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, U.S.A
  • Eric Allin Cornell (b. 1961), American Nobel prize-winning (2001) physicist
Vimy Ridge
  • R. A. Allin (1897-1917), Canadian Private in the 102nd Battalion who died at Vimy Ridge April 1917
  • Elton Culbert Allin (1886-1917), Canadian Lawyer, Lieutenant in the 44th Battalion from Manitoba who died at Vimy Ridge May 1917
  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  2. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  3. Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's. Retrieved October 5th 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
  4. Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's Retrieved January 6th 2023, retrieved from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
  5. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  7. Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, October 6) George Allin. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Allin/George_R./USA.html

Houseofnames.com on Facebook