Show ContentsNorris History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The history of the name Norris goes back those Anglo-Saxon tribes that once ruled over Britain. Such a name was given to a person from the north. The surname is usually derived from the Anglo-French words noreis and norreis, which both mean northerner. [1] Occasionally, Norris is an occupational name for a nurse; in this case, the derivation is from the Old French word norrice, which means nurse. Lastly, the surname Norris is sometimes a local surname for a "dweller at the north house." [2]

Early Origins of the Norris family

The surname Norris was first found in Hampstead Norreys (Hampstead Norris), a village and civil parish in Berkshire. Dating back to the Domesday Book, where it was listed as Hanstede [3], the village is today still noted for its Norman parish church and the remains of a Norman motte-and-bailey castle nearby.

"Petrus Norreis" is found in the Norman Exchequer Rolls, about 1198, and several of the name in England at the same date. [4] "Henry le Norreys was seized of estates in Nottinghamshire, which on his death King John granted to Alan le Norreys, his brother." [5]

Another noted source claims: "Their undoubted ancestor was Richard de Norreys, the favourite cook of Henry III.'s Queen, Eleanor of Provence, who was rewarded in 1267 by a grant of the manor of Ocholt in Berk­shire, "subject to a fee farm rent of 40s., and stated to have been an encroach­ment from the forest." [6]

The village of Hampstead Norreys changed its name to Hampstede Norreys, when the Norreys family bought the manor in 1448. A branch of the family was found in Speke, Lancashire where at one time they held Speke Hall. "The Norris family had, however, before this begun to acquire lands in the township, Alan le Norreys of Speke being apparently the first to do so. A younger son of Alan, John le Norreys, established himself at Woolton. John's elder son John, who succeeded, is mentioned in the settlement made by Sir Henry le Norreys in 1367." [4]

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 include an entry for Thomas le Noreis, but no county was given. The Writs of Parliament list Walter le Noreis, 1313 and again, no county was recorded. [7]

In the 14th century, some of the family were found in West Derby, Lancashire. "The Norris family had an estate here in the fourteenth century, acquired by William, a younger son of John le Norreys of Speke. It descended in the fifteenth century to Thomas Norris, whose daughter and heir Lettice married her distant cousin Thomas Norris of Speke, and so carried the estate back to the parent stock. One of their grandsons, William Norris, was settled here, his estate remaining with his descendants to the end of the seventeenth century. The family remained constant to the Roman Church and had to face loss and suffering in consequence, especially during the Commonwealth; thus the threat of a fresh outbreak of persecution as a result of the Oates plot appears to have broken the resolution of 'Mr. Norris of Derby,' who conformed to the legally established religion in 1681. Norris Green is supposed to indicate the site of their estate." [4]

"From the de Erneys it came, also by marriage, to the family of Norres, of whom was Sir William Norres, who brought from the palace of Holyrood, at Edinburgh, part of the royal library and some curious pieces of fine oak wainscot, to Speke Hall: this mansion was re-erected by Sir Edward Norres. The family retained the manor until the 18th century, when their heiress married Lord Sidney Beauclerk, fifth son of Charles, Duke of St. Alban's; whose grandson, Charles George, sold Speke to the Watt family. The great hall is very lofty, with wainscot and a ceiling of oak, and having a mantelpiece brought from Holyrood: at each angle of the southern wall, within the court, are two spacious corbelled windows, one of which lights the hall. The house was originally surrounded by a moat, of which the outlines remain, and over which a bridge leads to the principal entrance. The whole forms a highly interesting specimen of old English domestic architecture." [8]

Early History of the Norris family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Norris research. Another 177 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1405, 1433, 1450, 1481, 1507, 1525, 1564, 1572, 1575, 1579, 1584, 1597, 1599, 1601, 1603, 1622, 1658, 1670, 1671, 1675, 1702, 1711, 1724, 1735, 1749, 1777 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Norris History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Norris 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 Norris family name include Norreys, Norris, Norres, Norrice, Norrish and others.

Early Notables of the Norris family

Distinguished members of the family include

  • Henry Norris "Norreys" (1525-1601), created 1st Baron Norreys in 1572
  • Francis Norris (1579-1622), 2nd Baron Norreys, who was made Earl of Berkshire and Viscount Thame in 1622, one day before his death
  • Sir William Norris, 1st Baronet (c.1658-1702), an English politician, Ambassador to Aurangzeb
  • Sir John Norris (c.1670-1749), British Admiral, who served as Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Navy under George II
  • John Norris (1675-1711) English churchman and writer

Norris World Ranking

In the United States, the name Norris is the 309th most popular surname with an estimated 87,045 people with that name. [9] However, in Canada, the name Norris is ranked the 837th most popular surname with an estimated 6,404 people with that name. [10] And in Newfoundland, Canada, the name Norris is the 211st popular surname with an estimated 202 people with that name. [11] Australia ranks Norris as 331st with 10,800 people. [12] New Zealand ranks Norris as 414th with 1,592 people. [13] The United Kingdom ranks Norris as 307th with 19,783 people. [14]

Ireland Migration of the Norris family to Ireland

Some of the Norris family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 147 words (10 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Norris migration to the United States +

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. Investigation of the origins of family names on the North American continent has revealed that early immigrants bearing the name Norris or a variant listed above:

Norris Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Mary Norris, who arrived in America in 1620 [15]
  • Mary Norris, who arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1620 [15]
  • Edward Norris, who settled in Salem in 1630
  • Jo Norris, aged 18, who arrived in Bermuda, (Somers Islands) in 1635 aboard the ship "Truelove" [15]
  • Ann Norris, who landed in Maryland in 1637 [15]
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Norris Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Martin Norris, who landed in Virginia in 1712 [15]
  • Humphrey Norris, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1717-1718 [15]
  • Charles Norris, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1730-1731 [15]
  • Richard Norris, who arrived in America in 1765 [15]
  • Philip Norris, who arrived in Maryland in 1776 [15]
Norris Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Thomas Norris, who landed in America in 1804 [15]
  • Tho Norris, aged 56, who landed in New York, NY in 1804 [15]
  • James Norris, who arrived in America in 1805 [15]
  • Martha Norris, who arrived in America in 1805 [15]
  • Patrick Norris, aged 25, who landed in Louisiana in 1813 [15]
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Canada Norris migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Norris Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • John Norris, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749
  • William Norris, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749
  • Robert Norris, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
Norris Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • James Norris, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1829
  • Ebenezer Norris, who landed in Canada in 1835
  • James Norris, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1836
  • William Norris, who arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1843
  • Mrs. Alice Norris, aged 24 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Avon" departing 19th May 1847 from Cork, Ireland; the ship arrived on 26th July 1847 but she died on board [16]
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Australia Norris migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Norris Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. John Norris, (b. 1799), aged 17, English convict who was convicted in Somerset, England for life for highway robbery, transported aboard the "Fame" on 9th October 1816, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1859 [17]
  • Mr. Thomas Norris, (b. 1791), aged 25, English carrier who was convicted in Somerset, England for life for highway robbery, transported aboard the "Fame" on 9th October 1816, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [17]
  • Mr. Thomas Norris, British Convict who was convicted in Surrey, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Batavia" in October 1817, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [18]
  • Mr. John Norris, English convict who was convicted in St. Albans, Hertfordshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Canada" on 23rd April 1819, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [19]
  • Mr. Edward Norris, British Convict who was convicted in Essex, England for life, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 27th October 1819, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) [20]
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

New Zealand Norris migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Norris Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Charles Norris, aged 23, a farm labourer, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Arab" in 1841
  • Barbara Ann Norris, aged 20, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Arab" in 1841
  • Mr. George Norris, British settler as part of the 8th Detachment of the Royal New Zealand Fencibles travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Oriental Queen" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 18th September 1849 [21]
  • Mrs. Anne Norris, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Oriental Queen" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 18th September 1849 [21]
  • Mr. James Norris, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Inchinnan" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 27th May 1852 [22]
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

West Indies Norris migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. [23]
Norris Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Samuel Norris, who arrived in Barbados with his servants in 1679

Contemporary Notables of the name Norris (post 1700) +

  • Charles "Charlie" Norris (1963-2023), American professional wrestler, best known for his tenure in the World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1993
  • Clarence Norris (1912-1989), American teenage hobo, one of the Scottsboro Boys, accused of rape aboard a train, convicted and finally receiving a full posthumous pardon on November 21, 2013
  • Bessie Regina Norris (1953-2020), better known by her stage name Betty Wright, an American soul and R&B singer, songwriter and background vocalist, known for hits such as "Clean Up Woman" and "Tonight Is the Night"
  • William Wiley "Bill" Norris III (1936-2016), American jurist, Judge of the Louisiana Court of Appeal for the Second Circuit (1981-2002)
  • Carlos Ray "Chuck" Norris (b. 1940), American actor and Martial Artist, known for his countless movies, awarded the National Defense Service Medal, Korea Defense Service Medal and others for his services in the United States Air Force
  • Terry Wayne Norris (b. 1967), American retired boxer, three-time World Champion in the light middleweight division
  • David Stefan "Bud" Norris (b. 1985), American Major League Baseball starting pitcher for the Houston Astros
  • Bruce Norris, American winner of the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Drama
  • Benjamin Franklin Norris Jr. (1870-1902), American novelist
  • George William Norris (1861-1944), American politician, U.S. congressman and senator, who authored the 20th Amendment to the Constitution
  • ... (Another 104 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

HMS Hood
  • Mr. Thomas F Norris (b. 1911), Scottish Stoker 2nd Class serving for the Royal Navy from Carlisle, Cumberland, Scotland, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking [24]
HMS Repulse
  • Mr. Herbert Norris, British Stoker, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and survived the sinking [25]
RMS Titanic
  • Mr. James Norris (d. 1912), aged 23, English Fireman/Stoker from Southampton, Hampshire who worked aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking [26]


The Norris Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Feythfully serve
Motto Translation: Faithfully serve


Suggested Readings for the name Norris +

  • Descendants of Isaac Patten, Sr., and his Wife, Jane Norris: An Early Pioneer Family in Sullivan County, Indiana by Ernest C. Swanson.
  • Norris, Hackett, Prescott and Allied Families Hugh Albert Johnson.

  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  2. Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
  3. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  4. 'Townships: Scarisbrick', in A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 3, ed. William Farrer and J Brownbill (London, 1907), pp. 265-276. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol3/pp265-276 [accessed 21 January 2017].
  5. The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
  6. Burke, John Bernard, The Roll of Battle Abbey. London: Edward Churton, 26, Holles Street, 1848, Print.
  7. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  8. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  9. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  10. "Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
  11. The order of Common Surnames in 1955 in Newfoundland retrieved on 20th October 2021 (retrieved from Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland by E.R. Seary corrected edition ISBN 0-7735-1782-0)
  12. "Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
  13. "Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
  14. "UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
  15. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  16. Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 91)
  17. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 27th September 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/fairlie
  18. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/batavia
  19. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 9th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/canada
  20. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 12th March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/coromandel
  21. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  22. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  23. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  24. H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm
  25. HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html
  26. Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html


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