Show ContentsNollay History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Nollay is of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from when a family lived in the area that was referred to as the knoll. This surname was originally derived from the Old English word cnolle which means one who lived at the top of the hill or the summit. [1]

Early Origins of the Nollay family

The surname Nollay was first found in Yorkshire 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 Nollay family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Nollay research. Another 103 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1325, 1407, 1514, 1596, 1521, 1399, 1410, 1547, 1632, 1599, 1691, 1588, 1659, 1614, 1621, 1622, 1624, 1626, 1628, 1629, 1599, 1691, 1646, 1668, 1665, 1537, 1550, 1610, 1571 and are included under the topic Early Nollay History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Nollay 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 Nollay family name include Knollys, Knoll, Knolle, Knolles, Knowles, Knowlys and others.

Early Notables of the Nollay family (pre 1700)

Notables of the family at this time include Sir Robert Knolles (c. 1325-1407), an important English knight of the Hundred Years' War, operating with the tacit support of the Crown, succeeded in taking the only two major French cities, other than Calais and Poitiers, to fall to Edward III, methods earned him infamy as a freebooter and a ravager, the ruined gables of burned buildings came to be known as "Knolly's mitres" Sir Francis Knollys (1514-1596) was an English statesman, elder son of Robert Knollys (d. 1521.) He claims descent from Sir Thomas Knollys, Lord Mayor of London in 1399 and 1410...
Another 133 words (10 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Nollay Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Nollay family to Ireland

Some of the Nollay family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 70 words (5 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 Nollay 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 Nollay surname or a spelling variation of the name include : Hansard Knollys, who came to New Hampshire in 1630; Henry Knowles settled in Salem, Massachusetts in 1635; John Knowles settled in Barbados in 1635; as did Thomas Knowles.



  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.


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