Smaal History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The ancient Dalriadan-Scottish name Smaal is a nickname for a person who was small in stature. Smaal is a nickname surname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames. Nicknames form a broad and miscellaneous class of surnames, and can refer directly or indirectly to one's personality, physical attributes, mannerisms, or even their habits of dress. The surname Smaal derived from the Old English word smal, which means narrow, thin, or small, and referred to a person who was of slender build, or of small stature. This surname was established in Renfrew (now part of the Strathclyde region), prior to the Norman invasion of England, in 1066.
Early Origins of the Smaal family
The surname Smaal was first found in Renfrewshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Rinn Friù), a historic county of Scotland, today encompassing the Council Areas of Renfrew, East Renfrewshire, and Iverclyde, in the Strathclyde region of southwestern Scotland, where Richard Small was the Canon of Glasgow in 1329.
Early History of the Smaal family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Smaal research. Another 96 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1326, 1329, 1407, 1447, 1503, 1625, 1714 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Smaal History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Smaal Spelling Variations
Spelling variations were extremely common in medieval names, since scribes from that era recorded names according to sound rather than a standard set of rules. Smaal has appeared in various documents spelled Small, Smalle, Smal and others.
Early Notables of the Smaal family
Another 50 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Smaal Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Smaal family to Ireland
Some of the Smaal family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 60 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Smaal migration to the United States +
Significant portions of the populations of both the United States and Canada are still made up of the ancestors of Dalriadan families. Some of those in Canada originally settled the United States, but went north as United Empire Loyalists in the American War of Independence. The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw the ancestors of many Scots on both sides of the border begin to recover their collective national heritage through Clan societies and highland games. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:
Smaal Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
- Pal Smaal, who landed in Delaware in 1641 1
The Smaal 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: Ratione non ira
Motto Translation: By reason, not by rage.
Citations +
- 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)