Line History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
Early Origins of the Line family
The surname Line was first found in Ayrshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Inbhir Àir), formerly a county in the southwestern Strathclyde region of Scotland, that today makes up the Council Areas of South, East, and North Ayrshire.
The name Lynne originally meaning "a waterfall," is first noted in the area of Dalry in the years 1200-1300. They were located here and had land and owned the Castle of Lin near the waterfall of the Calf.
"The family of Lin or Lynn of that Ilk in the parish of Dairy, Ayrshire, took their name from the cascade on the Water of Caaf, near which stood the ancient castle of Lin." 1
Black also notes another possible origin of the family. "From the old manor of the same name in Peeblesshire. David de Lyne son of Robert de Lyne, granted to Neubode 'totam peteram de locqueruard que vocatur Wluesstrother,' c. 1165-1214, a grant increased by his son Robert within the same period." 1
The barony of Lynn was created from lands granted by Hugh de Morville in 1204. Later, John de la Linde was Warden of the City of London in 1265. Walter de Lynne was listed on the Ragman Rolls of 1296.
Early History of the Line family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Line research. Another 110 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1263, 1296, 1452, 1579, 1626, 1636 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Line History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Line Spelling Variations
Spelling variations of this family name include: Lind, Lynd, Lynde, Lynn, Line, Lines and others.
Early Notables of the Line family
Another 29 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Line Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Line Ranking
In the United States, the name Line is the 14,006th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2
Migration of the Line family to Ireland
Some of the Line family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 73 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Line migration to the United States +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Line Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
- Thomas Line, who arrived in Charlestown, Massachusetts in 1645 3
- Dary Line, who landed in Virginia in 1653 3
Line 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:
Line Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
- Mr. Job George Line, (b. 1862), aged 6 months, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Echunga" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 24th December 1862 4
- Mr. George Line, (b. 1828), aged 34, British ploughman travelling from London aboard the ship "Echunga" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 24th December 1862 4
- Mrs. Julia Line, (b. 1834), aged 28, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Echunga" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 24th December 1862 4
- Mr. Job George Line, (b. 1871), aged 6 months, English settler from Wells, England, travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship 'Merope' arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 25th August 1871 4
- Mr. George Line, (b. 1837), aged 34, English ploughman from Wells, England, travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship 'Merope' arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 25th August 1871 4
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Line 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.
5Line Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
- Christopher Line, who settled in Barbados in 1679
Contemporary Notables of the name Line (post 1700) +
- Frances Mary Line OBE (1940-2021), birth name of Frances Lloyd, a British broadcasting executive, Controller of BBC Radio 2, the first woman to hold the post and only the third to run a BBC Radio network
- Line Rochefort, Canadian scientist specializing in peatland ecology
Historic Events for the Line family +
- Mr. James A Line, British Leading Stoker, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 6
The Line Motto +
The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.
Motto: Semper virescit virtus
Motto Translation: Virtue always flourishes.
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)
- "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)
- New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
- HMS Prince of Wales Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listprincecrew.html