Blessing History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Early Origins of the Blessing family

The surname Blessing was first found in Lancashire at Pleasington, a village and civil parish in the Borough of Blackburn with Darwen that dates back to 1196 when it was listed as Plesigtuna and literally meant "estate associated with a man called Pleasa" from the Old English personal name + "ing" + "tun." 1 Another reference claims that it was listed in the Domesday Book, but we cannot collaborate this claim. As far as the surname is concerned, it was first referenced in the 13th century and are recorded in the Harleian Manuscripts in the British Museum 1139, folio 37b.

Sir Robert de Plesyngton (died 1393) was "Chief Baron of the Exchequer, was no doubt a member of the Lancashire family which derived its name from Pleasington, near Blackburn, and was perhaps a cousin of the first of that name, who owned Dimples in Garstang, Lancashire, where the family survived until the rebellion of 1715." 2

Early History of the Blessing family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Blessing research. Another 89 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1351, 1437, 1455, 1468, 1487, 1549, 1637 and 1679 are included under the topic Early Blessing History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Blessing Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Plessington, Blessington, Pleasington and many more.

Early Notables of the Blessing family

Another 44 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Blessing Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Blessing Ranking

In the United States, the name Blessing is the 5,838^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 3

Blessing migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Blessing Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Anne Blessing, who landed in Virginia in 1714 4
Leonhard Blessing, who arrived in Georgia in 1749 aboard the ship "Charles Town Galley" 4
Anna Catharina Blessing, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1750 4
Jacob Blessing, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1752 4

Blessing Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Lenhart Blessing, who arrived in Maryland in 1822 4
Gerh Bernh Blessing, who landed in America in 1844 4
Louis Von Blessing, aged 29, who landed in New York, NY in 1858 4
Frank Xavier Blessing, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1861 4

Blessing 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:

Blessing Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

John Blessing, aged 21, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Shamrock" in 1856

Contemporary Notables of the name Blessing (post 1700) +

Jack Blessing (b. 1951), American actor, known for his work in The Defection of Simas Kudirka (1978), Small & Frye (1983) and Moonlighting (1985)
Louis W. Blessing Jr., American politician of the Republican party, Member of the Ohio House of Representatives
Donald F. Blessing (1905-2000), American Olympic gold medalist coxswain in the 1928 Summer Olympics
Lee Knowlton Blessing (b. 1949), American playwright, best known for his 1988 work, A Walk in the Woods
Martin Blessing (b. 1963), German banker and Chairman of the Board of Managing Directors of Commerzbank AG, Germany's second largest bank
Dr. Karl Blessing (1900-1971), German banker, President of the Deutsche Bundesbank (1958 to 1969)
Emil Karl Blessing (1880-1954), founder of E. K. Blessing, manufacturer of wind instruments and accessories

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)