The Anglo-Saxon name Bang comes from the family having resided by an open manger or stall. It derived from the Old English name Binningas, which was a name for someone who lived near stables. Alternatively the name could have been derived from "byng" and meant "dweller by the hollow." [1]
Another source has a different origin of the name: "from the occurrence of such compounds as Bingley, Bingham, Bingfield, in names of places, it is highly probable that Bing, or Byng, was an ancient personal name. " [2]
And another believes the name was actually a Norman name "from Binge-Gerault, Normandy, [which is] mentioned in a charter of King John to Henry de Ferrers. In 1191 Robert de Binga witnessed a charter of Henry, Bishop of Bayeux, executed at Rouen. From this Norman family descended the Viscounts Torrington, and the celebrated Sir John Byng, General in the Peninsular War, and Earl of Strafford. " [3]
The surname Bang was first found in Kent, where the family "held property in Wrotham in the time of Elizabeth, and one of this family was sheriff of Kent in the same reign. In the time of James I. the Bings also owned property in Tunbridge, where the name still remains; and in this reign George Bing was mayor of Dover, and also the representative of the city in Parliament. " [4]
Apart from the aforementioned Norman entry, the first mention of the name in ancient England was in 1274 when the Hundredorum Rolls listed Robert Bing as holding lands in Devon at that time and Reginald Binge was holding lands in Oxfordshire. [5] John Byng was listed in the Assize Rolls of Kent in 1317. [1]
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bang research. Another 95 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1739, 1574, 1652, 1663, 1733, 1666, 1672, 1654, 1712 and 1752 are included under the topic Early Bang History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Bang has been spelled many different ways. Before English spelling became standardized over the last few hundred years, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. As the English language changed in the Middle Ages, absorbing pieces of Latin and French, as well as other languages, the spelling of people's names also changed considerably, even over a single lifetime. Spelling variants included: Bing, Binge, Binley, Binckes, Bink, Byng, Bincks and others.
Notables of the family at this time include Doctor Andrew Bing (1574-1652), English scholar, a fellow of Peterhouse, who was Regius Professor of Hebrew at Cambridge, and was part of the "First Cambridge Company" charged by James I of England with translating parts of the Old Testament for the King James Version of the Bible. [6]
George Byng Viscount Torrington (1663-1733), was a British admiral and the eldest son of John Byng, from a family who had settled for many centuries at Wrotham in Kent. "In 1666...
Another 86 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bang Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
In the United States, the name Bang is the 10,675th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. [7]
Some of the Bang family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
In an attempt to escape the chaos experienced in England, many English families boarded overcrowded and diseased ships sailing for the shores of North America and other British colonies. Those families hardy enough, and lucky enough, to make the passage intact were rewarded with land and a social environment less prone to religious and political persecution. Many of these families became important contributors to the young colonies in which they settled. Early immigration and passenger lists have documented some of the first Bangs to arrive on North American shores: