Dunington History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Dunington is of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from when the family lived by a stream at the hill. The surname Dunington originally derived from the Old English word Dunestorp which later changed to Donnington. The surname Dunington is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a 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. As a general rule, the greater the distance between an individual and their homeland, the larger the territory they were named after. For example, a person who only moved to another parish would be known by the name of their original village, while people who migrated to a different country were often known by the name of a region or country from which they came.

Early Origins of the Dunington family

The surname Dunington was first found in Leicestershire where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.

Early History of the Dunington family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dunington research. Another 87 words (6 lines of text) covering the year 1532 is included under the topic Early Dunington History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dunington Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, early Anglo-Saxon surnames like Dunington are characterized by many spelling variations. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages, even literate people changed the spelling of their names. 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. The variations of the name Dunington include: Donnington, Donington, Donnyngton, Donyngton and many more.

Early Notables of the Dunington family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Thomas Donington, B. Decr. (died 1532), Dean of York and Southwell. "Donington was formally instituted to Aughton by Cardinal Wolsey, as legate 'a latere,' and had, it would appear, obtained possession, but on the Feast of the Assumption, when prepared to say mass and preach the word of God, was ousted by Brian Moorcroft. The latter was chaplain of Edward Molyneux, rector of Sefton, described...
Another 72 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dunington Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dunington migration to the United States +

Many English families tired of political and religious strife left Britain for the new colonies in North America. Although the trip itself offered no relief - conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and many travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute - these immigrants believed the opportunities that awaited them were worth the risks. Once in the colonies, many of the families did indeed prosper and, in turn, made significant contributions to the culture and economies of the growing colonies. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families has revealed a number of immigrants bearing the name Dunington or a variant listed above:

Dunington Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Nicholas Dunington, who arrived in Virginia in 1651
Mich Dunington, who landed in Virginia in 1651 1
James Dunington, who arrived in Maryland in 1676 1

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)