Wall History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms 

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The origins of the Wall name come from when the Anglo-Saxon tribes ruled over Britain. The name Wall was originally derived from a family having lived near a stone-built wall. Wall is a local surname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames. Other types of local surnames include topographic surnames, which could be given to a person who lived beside any physical feature, such as a hill, stream, church or type of tree. Habitation names form the other broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties. The surname Wall referred to a person who lived beside a large stone wall, which was used either for the purpose of fortification, or to keep back the encroachment of the sea. Members of the Wall family were established in Gloucestershire prior to the Norman Conquest of England, in 1066. By the time of the Conquest, they were major landholders in that county.

Early Origins of the Wall family

The surname Wall was first found in Gloucestershire where they held a family seat from very ancient times and appeared as holders of lands in the Domesday Book compiled in 1086 by King William of England. The name was from the Anglo Saxon Wal, meaning a stranger. Wales is a parish, in the union of Worksop, S. division of the wapentake of Strafforth and Tickhill in the West Riding of Yorkshire. "This parish, in the Domesday Survey called Walise, belonged to Morcar, Earl of Northumberland, in the reign of Edward the Confessor." 1

Early History of the Wall family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wall research. Another 134 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1210, 1303, 1352, 1588, 1620, 1647, 1666, 1679, 1728, 1760, 1789 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Wall History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wall Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Wall include Wall, Walls, Wale, Walles and others.

Early Notables of the Wall family

Distinguished members of the family include

Wall World Ranking

In the United States, the name Wall is the 555th most popular surname with an estimated 52,227 people with that name. 2 However, in Canada, the name Wall is ranked the 374th most popular surname with an estimated 12,390 people with that name. 3 And in Newfoundland, Canada, the name Wall is the 146th popular surname with an estimated 263 people with that name. 4 Australia ranks Wall as 385th with 9,662 people. 5 New Zealand ranks Wall as 382nd with 1,693 people. 6 The United Kingdom ranks Wall as 405th with 16,102 people. 7

Migration of the Wall family to Ireland

Some of the Wall family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 80 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Wall migration to the United States +

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:

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

Wall migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

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

Wall migration to Australia +

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

Wall Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Wall 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:

Wall Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Wall 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
Wall Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Contemporary Notables of the name Wall (post 1700) +


Suggested Readings for the name Wall +
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