Show ContentsHeiney History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The ancient name of Heiney finds its origins with the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It comes from a name for a keeper of the deer. The surname Heiney originally derived from the Old English word "hinde" which referred to someone who tended the deer. A quote from Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales underlines the occupation: Ther n'as baillif, ne herde, ne other hine.

Early Origins of the Heiney family

The surname Heiney was first found in Oxfordshire, where one of the first on record was Robert Hine who was Lord of the manor and held estates in that shire in the year 1254. John le Hyne was listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 in Oxford, and Robert le Hine was listed in Suffolk in the same rolls. The Writs of Parliament of 1313 show Stephen le Hine. [1]

Early History of the Heiney family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Heiney research. Another 94 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1254, 1687, 1694, 1705, 1711, 1712, 1730, 1735 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Heiney History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Heiney 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 Heiney family name include Hines, Hine, Hyne, Hynes and others.

Early Notables of the Heiney family

Notables of this surname at this time include: William Hine (1687-1730), English organist and composer, born at Brightwell, Oxfordshire, in 1687. He was chorister of Magdalen College, Oxford, in 1694, and clerk in 1705. "In 1711 or 1712 Hine became organist of Gloucester Cathedral, and shortly afterwards married Alicia, the daughter of...
Another 52 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Heiney Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Heiney family to Ireland

Some of the Heiney family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 61 words (4 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 Heiney family

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 Heiney surname or a spelling variation of the name include : Thomas and Anthony Hine settled in Virginia in 1653; James Hines settled in Boston in 1716; Jane Hine settled in New England in 1769; James, Jane, Michael, Patrick and William Hines all arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860. In Newfoundland, Philip Hines settled at Holyrood Head in 1801.


Contemporary Notables of the name Heiney (post 1700) +

  • Walter E. Heiney, American politician, Burgess of Palmerton, Pennsylvania, 1933-35 [2]


  1. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  2. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 26) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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