Belshaw Surname, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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The Norman Conquest of England in 1066 brought much change, including many immigrants with new names. Among these were the ancestors of the Belshaw family, whose name comes from the Old Norse word which means good friends. The name appears in the oldest of all English plays The Mystery Plays. "Lo, here is the Belshere broght ye had bring". A parochial name from Bellecourt, near Perrone in Normandy, it is believed to have arrived in England with the Norman Conquest and the name appears on the Roll of the Battel Abbey as Bellesur.

Belshaw Early Origins

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The surname Belshaw was first found in Gloucestershire where they had been granted lands by King William for their assistance at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Anciently the family held the lands of Bellecourt in Normandy, to which they gave name.

Belshaw Spelling Variations

Norman surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are largely due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England, as well as the official court languages of Latin and French, also had pronounced influences on the spelling of surnames. Since medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings. The name has been spelled Belcher, Belsher, Belleser, Bellcher, Bellsher, Beleser, Bellesur, Bellecourt, Belcourt and many more.

Belshaw Early History

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Belshaw research. Another 189 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1500, 1681, 1757, 1730, 1741, 1730, 1741, 1747 and 1757 are included under the topic Early Belshaw History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Belshaw Early Notables (pre 1700)

Another 41 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Belshaw Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Belshaw In Ireland

Some of the Belshaw family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. Another 49 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

The Great Migration

Many English families emigrated to North American colonies in order to escape the political chaos in Britain at this time. Unfortunately, many English families made the trip to the New World under extremely harsh conditions. Overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the stormy Atlantic. Despite these hardships, many of the families prospered and went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the United States and Canada. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the name Belshaw or a variant listed above:

Belshaw Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Robert Belshaw, who arrived in Charleston, South Carolina in 1808 ^[1]CITATION[CLOSE]
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)

Belshaw Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Esther Belshaw, aged 17, a machinist, who arrived in Hawkes Bay aboard the ship "Countess of Kintore" in 1875

Contemporary Notables of the name Belshaw (post 1700)

George Phelps Mellick Belshaw, American cleric, the 9th Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey from 1983 to 1994
Les Belshaw, English professional rugby league footballer active in the 1950s
William "Billy" Belshaw, English professional rugby league footballer active in the 1930s and 1940s, member of the England and Great Britain National Teams (1935-1937)
Cyril Shirley Belshaw (b. 1921), New Zealand anthropologist, and was professor of anthropology at the University of British Columbia (UBC) from 1953 to 1987
Horace Belshaw (1898-1962), English-born, New Zealand teacher, economist and university professor, awarded the King George V Silver Jubilee Medal in 1935
Scott Belshaw (b. 1985), nicknamed "Ding Ding", Northern Irish professional heavyweight boxer

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: Loyal au mort
Motto Translation: Faithful unto death.

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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)

Other References

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds. Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8).
Colletta, John P. They Came In Ships. Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1993. Print.
Le Patourel, John. The Norman Empire. New York: Oxford University Press, 1976. Print. (ISBN 0-19-822525-3).
Marcharn, Frederick George. A Constitutional History of Modern England 1485 to the Present. London: Harper and Brothers, 1960. Print.
Holt, J.C. Ed. Domesday Studies. Woodbridge: Boydell, 1987. Print. (ISBN 0-85115-477-8).
Bullock, L.G. Historical Map of England and Wales. Edinburgh: Bartholomew and Son, 1971. Print.
Robb H. Amanda and Andrew Chesler. Encyclopedia of American Family Names. New York: Haper Collins, 1995. Print. (ISBN 0-06-270075-8).
Magnusson, Magnus. Chambers Biographical Dictionary 5th edition. Edinburgh: W & R Chambers, 1990. Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin . Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8).
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X).
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The Belshaw Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Belshaw Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname.

This page was last modified on 25 February 2016 at 08:14.