Constantine History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The ancient and distinguished surname Constantine is derived from the Old French name "Constantin," which is itself derived from the Latin "Constantinus," meaning "steadfast and faithful." This name was popular throughout Continental Europe, due to the first Christian Roman Emperor, Constantine the Great, for whom Byzantium was renamed Constantinople. The name was brought to England in the wake of the Norman Conquest.
Early Origins of the Constantine family
The surname Constantine was first found in Devon and Cornwall where "Constantine, King of Devon and Cornwall in latter half of sixth century, after a wicked life, was 'converted to the Lord.' He then abandoned his throne and became a monk under S. Carthach at Rahin. King's County, Ireland. He afterwards crossed over to Scotland, founded the church of Govan, and suffered martyrdom in Kintyre, where there is a church, Kilchousland, named after him. In Angus he is vulgarly called Cousnan." 1
Another source notes: "Nigel was Viscount of Constantine or Coutances 1047, when he revolted against Duke William and lost his vast estates. Of his descendants, Ralph de Constantine was seated in Salop 1086 2. Hugh de Constantine, his son, granted lands to Salop Abbey before 1121. Umfrid de Constantine witnessed its foundation charter 1093, and Richard de Constantine that of Haghmond Abbey 1099. The family long flourished in Salop, and temp. Henry II. sent a branch to Ireland, of which Geoffry de Constantine witnessed the charter of St. Thomas, Dublin, 1177, and founded Tristernagh Abbey. " 3
Early History of the Constantine family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Constantine research. Another 132 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1172, 1173, 1189, 1199, 1236, 1501, 1524, 1559 and 1640 are included under the topic Early Constantine History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Constantine Spelling Variations
Spelling variations of this family name include: Constantine, Constantin, Cossentine, Considene, Consterdine, Constyn, Costantine and many more.
Early Notables of the Constantine family
Outstanding amongst the family at this time was
- George Constantine (b. 1501-1559), was a a Protestant reformer who was first brought up as a surgeon. "He received his education in the University of Cambridge, and was Bachelor of Canon Law in 1524...
Constantine Ranking
In the United States, the name Constantine is the 6,976th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 4
Migration of the Constantine family to Ireland
Some of the Constantine family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 84 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Constantine migration to the United States +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Constantine Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
- Jon. Constantine, who settled in Virginia in 1637
- Thomas Constantine, who landed in Maryland in 1675 5
- Conrad Constantine, who landed in Delaware in 1693 5
Constantine Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
- Jean Constantine, who settled in Virginia in 1700
- Tho Constantine, who arrived in Virginia in 1700 5
- Nicholas Constantine, who arrived in New York in 1798 5
Constantine Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- Antonio Constantine, who arrived in Puerto Rico in 1816 5
- Francisco Constantine, who landed in Mobile County, Ala in 1835 5
- John Constantine, aged 38, who arrived in New York in 1854 5
- John Constantine, who settled in New York in 1854
- Lefter Constantine, who landed in Texas in 1890 5
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Constantine migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Constantine Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
- Jane Constantine, who emigrated from Ireland to Saint John, New Brunswick in 1842
- Miss. Bridget Constantine who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Horatio" departing 18th July 1847 from Limerick, Ireland; the ship arrived on 3rd September 1847 but she died on board 6
Constantine migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
Constantine Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- William Constantine, English convict from Middlesex, who was transported aboard the "Asia" on September 3rd, 1820, settling in New South Wales, Australia 7
- Mr. Francis Constantine, British Shoe Maker who was convicted in North Riding, Yorkshire, England for 10 years for larceny, transported aboard the "Asia" on 25th April 1840, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land), he died in 1868 8
- Mr. John Constantine, (b. 1819), aged 25, English labourer who was convicted in Yorkshire, England for 15 years for highway robbery, transported aboard the "Barossa" on 9th May 1844, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land), he died in 1877 9
- Joseph Constantine, English convict from Lancaster, who was transported aboard the "Adelaide" on August 08, 1849, settling in Van Diemen's Land and Port Phillip, Australia 10
- Sarah Constantine, aged 59, a domestic servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1856 aboard the ship "Navarino" 11
Constantine 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:
Constantine Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
- Mr. Robert Constantine, (b. 1813), aged 26, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Oriental" arriving in Port Nicholson, Wellington, New Zealand on 31st January 1840 12
- Mrs. Constantine, (b. 1819), aged 20, British settler travelling from London with 2 children aboard the ship "Oriental" arriving in Port Nicholson, Wellington, New Zealand on 31st January 1840 12
- M.A. Constantine, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Ashburton" in 1857
Constantine 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.
13Constantine Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
- Charles Constantine, who arrived in Barbados in 1677
Contemporary Notables of the name Constantine (post 1700) +
- Justin Constantine (d. 2022), American lieutenant colonel in the United States Marine Corps, attorney and inspirational speaker
- Thomas A. Constantine (1938-2015), American Administrator for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) (1994-1999)
- Mildred Constantine (1913-2008), American curator at Museum of Modern Art
- Storm Constantine (1956-2021), British science fiction and fantasy author, primarily known for her Wraeththu series
- Eddie Constantine (1917-1993), born Edward Constantinowsky, American movie actor, singer, and novelist who appeared in 127 features
- Learie Nicholas Constantine (1902-1971), Baron Constantine, West Indian cricket player and statesman, Trinidad's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, the UK's first black peer
- Michael Constantine (b. 1927), American Emmy Award winning actor, probably best known for his role as the high school principal, Seymour Kaufman, on ABC's sitcom, Room 222
- Major-General Charles Francis Constantine (1883-1953), District Officer Commanding 2nd Military District (1940-1943) 14
- Ventan Constantine Yablonski (1923-2008), American football fullback who played four seasons with the Chicago Cardinals (1948-1951)
- Fotis Constantine Kafatos FRS (1940-2017), Greek biologist, founding president of the European Research Council (ERC)
Historic Events for the Constantine family +
- Mr. Henry Constantine, Newfoundlander from Pouch Cove, who on the 30th March 1914 he was part of the Seal Crew of the "SS Newfoundland" leaving the ship to intercept the Stephano which took him to the hunting grounds, he disembarked to begin sealing, but was caught in a thickening storm, attempting to return to the Newfoundland he and the 132 crew made camp for two days the sealers were stranded on the ice in a blizzard attempting to return to the ship, he survived
Citations +
- 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)
- Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
- The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
- "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
- 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)
- Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 70)
- State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1820 with 192 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1820
- Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th January 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1840
- Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 24th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/barossa
- State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2014, November 17) Adelaide voyage to Van Diemen's Land and Port Phillip, Australia in 1849 with 303 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/adelaide/1849
- South Australian Register Friday 22nd February 1856. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Navarino 1856. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/navarino1856.shtml
- New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
- Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, September 15) Charles Constantine. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Constantine/Charles_Francis/Canada.html