Pringle History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms 

Origins Available: 
  Scotland 
  Ireland 
  England 


Pringle was first used as a surname by the descendents of the ancient Boernician clans of Scotland. The Pringle family lived in a place near Stow Roxburghshire, called Hopringle or Pringle. As such, Pringle is a habitation name, a category of surnames that were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. The place name comes from the Old English word hop which referred to an "enclosed valley," and Prjónn, an Old Norse name comprised of components which mean peg and ravine. Thus, the original bearer of the surname came from an area noted for an enclosed valley or a ravine.

However some sources presume the name to be derived from "pilgrim," as "they bear in their arms the escallop shells or badges of pilgrims to the Holy Land." 1 2

Early Origins of the Pringle family

The surname Pringle was first found in Roxburghshire, where the first Chief on record was Robert de Hoppryngil who witnessed a deed by King Alexander III of Scotland in 1250 A.D. Forty-six years later, Ellys Obringkel was Bishop of St. Andrews, and rendered homage to King Edward I of England on his brief conquest of Scotland in 1296. His seal bore a hunting horn. About this time they acquired the Clan territories near Stow and they became close allies of the Black Douglases. 3

"The little silver coin called a pringle, formerly minted in Scotland, and of about the value of an English penny, may have derived its name from one of this family." 4

Early History of the Pringle family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Pringle research. Another 426 words (30 lines of text) covering the years 1200, 1368, 1406, 1450, 1455, 1485, 1513, 1568, 1580, 1625, 1626, 1628, 1631, 1664, 1667, 1689, 1736 and 1976 are included under the topic Early Pringle History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Pringle Spelling Variations

In the many years before the invention of the printing press and the first dictionaries, names and other words were spelled according to sound, often differently with each person who wrote them. Spelling variations of Pringle include Pringle, Pringell, Prindle, Hopringle and others.

Early Notables of the Pringle family

Notable among the family at this time was

Pringle Ranking

In the United States, the name Pringle is the 2,261st most popular surname with an estimated 14,922 people with that name. 5 However, in New Zealand, the name Pringle is ranked the 747th most popular surname with an estimated 971 people with that name. 6

Migration of the Pringle family to Ireland

Some of the Pringle family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 35 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Pringle migration to the United States +

In many cases, the ancestors of many of these Boernician-Scottish people are just now learning of their Scottish heritage. Since the trip was so arduous, and many were fleeing from poverty itself, settlers brought little with them and often had nothing of their personal history to hand down to their children. Clan societies and highland games have helped to correct this problem in the 20th century. Early immigration records have shown some of the first Pringles to arrive on North American shores:

Pringle Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
Pringle Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
Pringle Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
Pringle Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Pringle migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Pringle Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
Pringle Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Pringle migration to Australia +

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

Pringle Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Pringle 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:

Pringle Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Pringle 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. 15
Pringle Settlers in West Indies in the 18th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Pringle (post 1700) +
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