Blanchard History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms 

Origins Available: 
  England 
  France 


The first bearer of the name Blanchard most likely took on this name based on an early member of the family who was a person with a whitish, or white appearance having derived from the Old French word blanchart. Experts theorize that Blanchard may have also been a nickname for someone with an exceptionally pure character, since white was the symbolic color of purity during the Middle Ages. Alternatively, the name could have been a nickname for a "white horse." 1

Early Origins of the Blanchard family

The surname Blanchard was first found in Lancashire where they held a family seat from early times at Grimsbargh Hall. "Ponce Blanchard held twelve fees in Hants (Hampshire), granted by Richard I., and Gilbert and William Blanchard had estates in Lincolnshire." 2 Other very early references to the family include: Blanchard de Morba who was listed in the Pipe Rolls of Devon in 1180; Robertus blancard, Rotbertus quippe blancard, who was listed in the Inquisitio Inquests for Suffolk in 1086; and Richard Blanchard who was listed in Pipe Rolls of Lancashire in 1177. The author continues: "The 1086 example is, however, certainly a nickname, probably identical to Robertus Blancardus." 3

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had the following early entries for the family: William Blaunchard in Wiltshire; Reginald Blanchard in Yorkshire; and Robert Blaunchard in Lincolnshire. A few years later the Subsidy Rolls of Lancashire listed Nicholas Blaunchard in Lancashire in 1332. The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 include: Willelmus Blaunchard; and Elena Blaunchard. 1

"The name of Blanchard or Blanshard, which also occurs in the North and East Ridings of Yorkshire, has long been in the county of Lincoln. John Blauncherde of Lowthe gave £25 for the defence of his country at the time of the expected invasion of the Spanish Armada in 1588. Long before this, in the reign of Edward I., we find the name of Blaunchard in the county in the reign of Henry III. the name also occurred in Wiltshire, and, in fact, Blanchard or Blaunchard is also an old Wiltshire name, occurring in the hundred of Warminster in the 16th century." 4

Early History of the Blanchard family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Blanchard research. Another 112 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1587, 1651 and 1790 are included under the topic Early Blanchard History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Blanchard Spelling Variations

There are many spelling variations of Breton surnames, because the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The official court languages, which were Latin and French, were also influential on the spelling of a surname. Since 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, it was common to find references to one individual with many different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. The name has been spelled Blanchard, Blanchaud and others.

Early Notables of the Blanchard family

Notable of this family during the Middle Ages was

Blanchard World Ranking

In the United States, the name Blanchard is the 742nd most popular surname with an estimated 39,792 people with that name. 5 However, in Canada, the name Blanchard is ranked the 380th most popular surname with an estimated 12,182 people with that name. 6 And in Quebec, Canada, the name Blanchard is the 386th popular surname. 7 Newfoundland, Canada ranks Blanchard as 275th with 162 people. 8 France ranks Blanchard as 72nd with 34,292 people. 9


Blanchard migration to the United States +

Records show the name Blanchard in some of the earliest immigrant records of North America:

Blanchard Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
Blanchard Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
Blanchard Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Blanchard migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Blanchard Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century
Blanchard Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
Blanchard Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Blanchard migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Blanchard Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Blanchard 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:

Blanchard Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Blanchard 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. 18
Blanchard Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Blanchard (post 1700) +
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