Earnlay History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Earnlay is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from the family once having lived in the village of Ernle, in the county of Sussex.

Early Origins of the Earnlay family

The surname Earnlay was first found in Sussex at West Wittering, a parish, in the union of West Hampnett, hundred of Manhood, rape of Chichester. "Wittering was the occasional residence of the bishops of Chichester from the thirteenth to the sixteenth century, when the episcopal palace, now called Cakeham Manor Place, became the property of the Ernley family; the ancient mansion has partly disappeared, and the remainder has been converted into a farmhouse." 1

Early History of the Earnlay family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Earnlay research. Another 96 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1461, 1465, 1550, 1620, 1647, 1676, 1686, 1689 and 1697 are included under the topic Early Earnlay History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Earnlay Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Earnlay family name include Ernle, Earnley, Ernley, Earnlie, Earnleigh and others.

Early Notables of the Earnlay family

Notables of the family at this time include John Ernle, Esq.(died 1465), of Sidlesham, Sussex; John Ernle the Elder (born 1461), of Fosbury and Bishop's Cannings, Wiltshire; Sir John Ernle (1620-1697) was an English politician...
Another 34 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Earnlay Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Earnlay family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Earnlay surname or a spelling variation of the name include: Alexander Ernley arrived in Philadelphia in 1820.

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.