Contents [hide]

Reading History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Citations

Reading History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The ancestors of the bearers of the Reading family name are thought have lived in ancient Anglo-Saxon England. They were first found in the village of Reading found in the county of Berkshire. The surname Reading is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. In this case the surname was originally derived from the Old English word rydding which simply refers to an area that has been cleared.

Early Origins of the Reading family

The surname Reading was first found in Sussex. Some of the earliest records of the surname were: Robert de Reading (died 1325), English historian and a monk of Westminster; and John of Reading (Latin: Johannes de Reading, Johannes Radingia) who died 1346. He was an English Franciscan theologian and scholastic philosopher and follower of Duns Scotus. He wrote a commentary on the Four Books of Sentences written by Peter Lombard around 1320, at the University of Oxford. In 1322, he accepted a teaching position at Avignon and it was there that he died.

Early History of the Reading family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Reading research. Another 85 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1588, 1645, 1667, 1674, 1677, 1686, 1692, 1744, 1747, 1748, 1757, 1758 and 1767 are included under the topic Early Reading History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Reading Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Reading include Reading, Reding, Redding, Reddin and others.

Early Notables of the Reading family

Distinguished members of the family include

John Reading (1588-1667), English Calvinist and Biblical commentator; Sir James Reading; John Reading (c.1645-1692), English composer and organist, Choir master of Chichester Cathedral (1674-1677); an...
William Reading (1674-1744) was library keeper at Sion College, London Wall, London, born in the parish of Wombourne, Staffordshire. 1

Reading Ranking

In the United States, the name Reading is the 7,579^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2

Reading migration to the United States +

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Reading or a variant listed above:

Reading Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Miles Reading who arrived in Salem, Massachusetts in 1630 aboard the ship "Ambrose" as part of the Winthrop Fleet
Mr. Joseph Reading who arrived in Salem, Massachusetts in 1630 aboard the ship "Ambrose" as part of the Winthrop Fleet 3
John Reading, who arrived in Virginia in 1653 4
William Reading, who landed in Maryland in 1697-1698 4

Reading Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Daniel Reading, who landed in New England in 1716 4
William Reading, who settled in Maryland in 1775

Reading Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Charles Reading, who arrived in Mississippi in 1882 4

Reading migration to Australia +

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

Reading Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Henry Reading, English convict who was convicted in Surrey, England for life, transported aboard the "Claudine" on 20th May 1821, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 5
Mr. Dennis Reading, English convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Captain Cook" on 2nd May 1833, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mr. John Reading, English convict who was convicted in London, England for life, transported aboard the "Aurora" on 3rd November 1833, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
Mr. Henry Reading, English convict who was convicted in Buckinghamshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Aurora" on 18th June 1835, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 7
Mr. John Reading, British Convict who was convicted in Warwick, Warwickshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 25th June 1838, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 8
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Reading 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:

Reading Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

John Brown Reading, aged 26, a carpenter, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Duke of Roxburgh" in 1840 9
George Reading, aged 2, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Duke of Roxburgh" in 1840 9
Ellen Reading, aged 8 months, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Duke of Roxburgh" in 1840 9
Mr. George Reading, British settler arriving as Detachment of the Royal New Zealand Fencibles travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Sir George Symour" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 26th November 1847 10
Mrs. Hannah Reading, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Sir George Symour" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 26th November 1847 10
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Reading 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. 11

Reading Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Robert Reading, who arrived in Barbados in 1678

Contemporary Notables of the name Reading (post 1700) +

John Roberts Reading (1826-1886), American Democratic politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania (1869-1870)
Pierson B. Reading (1816-1868), American pioneer to California as a member of the Chiles-Walker party in 1843 where he received 26,632 acres, eponym of Reading California
Bertice Reading (1933-1991), American singer and actress
John H Reading (1917-2003), American Mayor of Oakland, California from 1966 to 1977
R. G. Reading, American politician, Member of California State Assembly 22nd District, 1853-54 12
Pierson B. Reading, American politician, Candidate for Governor of California, 1851 12
Joseph Reading, American Democratic Party politician, Mayor of Rockville, Maryland, 1896-98; Postmaster at Rockville, Maryland, 1916-21 12
John Roberts Reading (1826-1886), American Democratic Party politician, U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania 5th District, 1869-70 12
John H. Reading (1917-2003), American Republican politician, Mayor of Oakland, California, 1966-77 12
Charles N. Reading, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from New Jersey, 1900 12
... (Another 9 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Reading family +

HMS Prince of Wales

Mr. E Reading, British Leading Cook, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 13

The Reading 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: Dieu defende la droit
Motto Translation: God defends the right.

Citations +

Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's. Retrieved January 6th 2023 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th February 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/claudine
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/captain-cook
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 20th August 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/aurora
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 19th March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/coromandel
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 5th November 2010). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 17) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
HMS Prince of Wales Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listprincecrew.html