Ballantine History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
In ancient Scotland, the first people to use Ballantine as a surname were the Strathclyde-Britons. It was a name someone who lived in Roxburghshire, where the family was found since the early Middle Ages. One source claims the name was of local origin and denoted "a place of ancient pagan worship among the Celts, whose principal deity was Belen or Baal, the sun. To the honor of this deity, the Celts lighted fires on the 1st of May and Midsummer day. Baalantine signifies 'the fire of Baal,' from Baden and teine, Gaelic, fire. " 1 2
Early Origins of the Ballantine family
The surname Ballantine was first found in Roxburghshire "probably from the lands of Bellenden in the parish of Roberton. There is also a Ballinton, Ballintoun or Ballintome mentioned in Stirling Retours. " 3 4
"This Scottish name has undergone remarkable changes. 'Sir Richard of Bannochtine of the Corhous,' who flourished c. 1460, sometimes wrote himself Bannachty, and his son is called Sir John Bannatyne. This spelling continued till temp. Charles. II., when the proprietor of Corhouse was called indifferently John Bannatyne and Johne Ballentyne, and his son is described as the son of John Ballenden. In fact, down to a recent period, the forms Bannatyne and Ballantyne have been used indifferently by brothers of one house, and even by the same individual at different times. " 5
Early History of the Ballantine family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ballantine research. Another 109 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1153, 1460, 1545, 1553, 1563, 1577, 1591, 1605, 1608, 1616, 1630, 1642, 1661, 1671, 1680, 1800 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Ballantine History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Ballantine Spelling Variations
The origin of rules governing the spelling of names and even words is a very recent innovation. Before that, words and names were spelled according to sound, and, therefore, often appeared under several different spelling variations in a single document. Ballantine has been spelled Ballentine, Ballantyne, Ballantine, Ballentyne, Bannentyne, Bannantyne, Ballanden, Ballanden, Ballendine, Ballendyne, Ballentine and many more.
Early Notables of the Ballantine family
Notable amongst the family at this time was George Bannatyne (1545-1608), collector of Scottish poems, eponym of the Bannatyne Club in Edinburgh, he was the seventh of the twenty-three children of James Bannatyne of Kirktown of Newtyle in Forfarshire; Richard Bannatyne (died 1605), Scottish clergyman and scribe who served as secretary to John Knox; Sir James Bellenden of Broughton; William Bellenden, Lord Bellenden (died 1671), Treasurer-Depute of Scotland; and William Ballenden or Ballantyne (1616-1661), Scottish divine and a prefect-apostolic of the Roman Catholic church, a native of Douglas, Lanarkshire. 6
John...
Another 90 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Ballantine Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Ballantine family to Ireland
Some of the Ballantine family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 57 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Ballantine migration to the United States +
The persecution faced in their homeland left many Scots with little to do but sail for the colonies of North America. There they found land, freedom, opportunity, and nations in the making. They fought for their freedom in the American War of Independence, or traveled north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. In both cases, they made enormous contributions to the formation of those great nations. Among them:
Ballantine Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
- William Ballantine, who landed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1647 7
Ballantine Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- David Ballantine, who arrived in New York in 1801 7
- Robert Ballantine, who arrived in New York in 1819 7
- John Ballantine, who landed in Charleston, South Carolina in 1830 7
- George Ballantine, who landed in New York in 1836 7
- James Ballantine, who arrived in New York in 1847 7
Ballantine migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Ballantine Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
- William Ballantine, aged 6, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Salus" in 1833
- Jane Ballantine, aged 5, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Salus" in 1833
- Ellen Ballantine, aged 18 months, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Salus" in 1833
Ballantine migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
Ballantine Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- Mr. Adam Ballantine, (Ballantyne), (b. 1819), aged 12, Irish errand boy who was convicted in Armagh, Ireland for life for theft, transported aboard the "Captain Cook" on 5th November 1831, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1882 8
- Moses Ballantine, aged 19, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "South Sea"
Ballantine migration to New Zealand +
Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:
Ballantine Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
- Mr. William Ballantine, (b. 1840), aged 22, British farm labourer travelling from London aboard the ship 'Mermaid' arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 26th December 1862 9
- Miss Isabella Ballantine, (b. 1841), aged 21, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship 'Mermaid' arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 26th December 1862 9
- J. W. Ballantine, aged 24, who arrived in Bluff, New Zealand aboard the ship "Christian McAusland" in 1875
- Isabella Ballantine, aged 27, who arrived in Bluff, New Zealand aboard the ship "Christian McAusland" in 1875
- Margaret Ballantine, aged 28, a cook, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Rangitikei" in 1884
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Contemporary Notables of the name Ballantine (post 1700) +
- Carl Ballantine (b. 1922), American actor
- Peter Ballantine (1791-1883), Scottish-American founder of Patterson & Ballantine Brewing Company in 1840 in Newark, New Jersey, eponym of Ballantine Ale
- Ian Keith Ballantine (1916-1995), American publisher, founder of the paperback publisher Ballantine Books
- Whitney W. Ballantine (1910-1992), American Republican politician, Candidate for Wayne State University Board of Governors, 1959 10
- Thomas Austin Ballantine Jr. (1926-1992), American Democratic Party politician, Circuit Judge in Kentucky, 1964-77; U.S. District Judge for the Western District of Kentucky, 1977-91 10
- Muriel Erna Ballantine, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Massachusetts, 1972 10
- Mary Keith Ballantine (b. 1926), American Republican politician, Member of Michigan State House of Representatives 23rd District, 1979-82 10
- Joseph William Ballantine (b. 1888), American politician, U.S. Consul in Dairen, 1921-23; Tokyo, 1923-29; U.S. Consul General in Canton, 1930-32 10
- James Ballantine (1855-1896), American Republican politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Delaware County, 1890; Member of New York State Senate 26th District, 1896 10
- Edward D. Ballantine, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New Jersey, 1940, 1944 (alternate), 1948 (alternate) 10
- ... (Another 5 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Citations +
- Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. Print
- Sims, Clifford Stanley The Origin and Signification of Scottish Surnames. 1862. Print.
- 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)
- Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
- Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
- Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
- 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)
- Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/captain-cook
- New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 14) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html