The ancient
Anglo-Saxon culture once found in Britain is the soil from which the many generations of the Heardymand family have grown. The name Heardymand was given to a member of the family who was a person with a tough character or perhaps for a person who would be strenuous and complete in their endeavors. The name is derived from the Old English words
heard, which meant hard, and
mann, which meant man. In keeping with this meaning, Hardiman was the first practical powered exoskeleton, by General Electric in 1965. There is another explanation for the origin of the name; it could be
occupational, and be derived from the Old English
heord, which meant herd, and could refer to the
occupation of cowherd or shepherd. The records of the name found in
Lancashire seem to follow this form. This makes this name a good example of an English
polygenetic name; that is, a name with more than one origin taken on by unrelated groups of people. And yet another source claims the name was a
nickname for "a man of courage and bravery."
[1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Lowe, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.Early Origins of the Heardymand family
The surname Heardymand was first found in
Yorkshire where by far the most early records of the name was found. In this case, the "surname is derived from an
occupation. 'the servant of Hardy'."
[2]CITATION[CLOSE]
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6) The
Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list the following: Henricus Hardyman; Radulfus Hardyman and Ricardus Hardyman. "Every town in
Yorkshire has one or two Hardmans in its directory, which is the settled modern form."
[2]CITATION[CLOSE]
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Early History of the Heardymand family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Heardymand research.
Another 95 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1563 and 1575 are included under the topic Early Heardymand History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Heardymand 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 Heardymand family name include Hardman, Hardeman, Hardyment, Hardymen, Hardiman and others.
Early Notables of the Heardymand family (pre 1700)
Another 26 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Heardymand Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Heardymand family to Ireland
Some of the Heardymand family moved to
Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 45 words (3 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Heardymand family to the New World and Oceana
For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for
Ireland, the Canadas, 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 Heardymand surname or a spelling variation of the name include : John Hardeman, who settled in Barbados in 1685; Edward Hardman arrived in Pennsylvania in 1698; Phillip Hardman arrived in Pennsylvania in 1772; Edward, John, Michael, Richard, Thomas and William Hardman all arrived in Philadelphia between 1820 and 1840..