The present generation of the Hollings family is only the most recent to bear a name that dates back to the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. Their name comes from having lived in the region of Hollingside or Holmside in Durham. Hollin Old Hall is a house in Bollington, Cheshire, England with parts that date back to the 17th century and Hollin Hall is a country house in Crook in Cumbria that dates back to the 14th century.
Literally, the name originated from the expression 'of the hollins head,' as in "one who dwelt at the head of the hollin-bushes." [1]
The surname Hollings was first found in East Cheshire where the area has "given birth to a large number of Hollingsheads from some immediate locality of that name." [1]
By example, some of the early records include: John del Holynshede, 1408: East Cheshire; and Hugh Hollinshead, of Bosley, Yeoman, 1541, both recorded there. [1]
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hollings research. Another 115 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1560, 1561, 1644, 1550, 1550, 1554, 1546, 1529, 1580, 1577, 1587, 1587, 1541, 1577, 1635, 1556, 1612, 1556, 1573, 1574, 1575, 1683, 1739 and 1683 are included under the topic Early Hollings History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Until the dictionary, an invention of only the last few hundred years, the English language lacked any comprehensive system of spelling rules. Consequently, spelling variations in names are frequently found in early Anglo-Saxon and later Anglo-Norman documents. One person's name was often spelled several different ways over a lifetime. The recorded variations of Hollings include Hollinshed, Holinshed, Hollinshead, Holinshead, Hollingshead, Holingshead, Hollins, Holins, Hollings and many more.
Notables of this surname at this time include: Sir Hugh Hollinshed and his son, Ottiwell Hollinshed MA ( fl. 1550s), English prelate, Canon of Windsor from 1550 to 1554. He was one of the original Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge in 1546.
Raphael Holinshed (1529-1580) was an English chronicler, best known for his Holinshed's Chronicles, first published in 1577, and later in a second edition in 1587. It is generally thought that Shakespeare used the revised second edition of the Chronicles (1587) as the source for most of his history plays.
He "is said to have been son of Ralph Holinshed or Hollingshed...
Another 153 words (11 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Hollings Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Thousands of English families boarded ships sailing to the New World in the hope of escaping the unrest found in England at this time. Although the search for opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad took the lives of many because of the cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels, the opportunity perceived in the growing colonies of North America beckoned. Many of the settlers who survived the journey went on to make important contributions to the transplanted cultures of their adopted countries. The Hollings were among these contributors, for they have been located in early North American records: