Coldingham History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

Coldingham is a name that first reached England following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Coldingham family lived in Yorkshire. They lived in Collingham, in a parish near Wetherby, as Lords of the Manor of Collingham.

Early Origins of the Coldingham family

The surname Coldingham was first found in West Yorkshire at Collingham, a village and civil parish bounded on the north by the river Wharf and comprises about 2,500 acres. The village dates back to 1167, when it was listed as Col(l)ingeham. North and South Collingham, Nottinghamshire actually date back further to the Domesday Book where they were listed as the one village of Colingeham. All have the same meaning of "homestead or village of a family or followers of a man called Col or Cola", having derived from the Old English personal name + ham. 1

Further to the north in Scotland, Coldingham is a parish in Berwickshire. "This place, of which the name is of doubtful derivation, has a claim to very remote antiquity, and appears to have originally acquired distinction from the erection of a nunnery, in the seventh century, by Ebba, daughter of Ethelfrith, King of Northumbria. The monastery of Coldingham is said to have been founded by Edgar, King of Scotland, about the year 1100." 2

Robert de Colingeham was listed in the Pipe Rolls of Leicestershire in 1195 and Richard de Kollyngeham was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1296. 3

Geoffrey de Coldingham (fl. 1214), was an early historian of the church of Durham and was, according to the heading prefixed to the manuscripts of his book, sacrist of Coldingham priory, a ' cell ' or dependent establishment of the priory of Durham. "Of his life nothing is known. His history begins with the death of Bishop William de St. Barbara in 1152, and ends abruptly with the election of Morgan (an alleged natural son of Henry II) to the bishopric in 1214. " 4

Thomas Colyngham (fl. 1387), was a Cistercian monk, attended the university of Paris, where he proceeded to the degree of doctor, presumably in theology. 4

Early History of the Coldingham family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Coldingham research. Another 65 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1195, 1296, 1379 and 1613 are included under the topic Early Coldingham History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Coldingham Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, Anglo-Norman surnames like Coldingham are characterized by many spelling variations. Scribes and monks in the Middle Ages spelled names they sounded, so it is common to find several variations that refer to a single person. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages such as Norman French and Latin, even literate people regularly changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Coldingham include Collingham, Colingeham, Coldingham, Kollyngeham, Colyngham, Colingam and many more.

Early Notables of the Coldingham family

More information is included under the topic Early Coldingham Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Coldingham family

Faced with the chaos present in England at that time, many English families looked towards the open frontiers of the New World with its opportunities to escape oppression and starvation. People migrated to North America, as well as Australia and Ireland in droves, paying exorbitant rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, but those who did see the shores of North America were welcomed with great opportunity. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America carried the name Coldingham, or a variant listed above: John Collingam who sailed to Maryland in 1673.

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of Scotland. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print