Show ContentsScham History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Scham family

The surname Scham was first found in Aberdeenshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Obar Dheathain), a historic county, and present day Council Area of Aberdeen, located in the Grampian region of northeastern Scotland, where they held a family seat from ancient times, some say as early as the 12th century. In this county the name has been found in the parishes of Fyvie, Drumblade, Auchterless, Culsalmond, Forgue, Turriff, Gamrie and King Edward.

"A rare but old surname in Scotland. 'The surname of Shand seems originally to have been confined to the north-eastern counties, particularly Aberdeenshire, and in that county more especially to the districts comprising the parishes of: Turriff, Forgue, Drumblade, Auchterless, Culsalmond, Fyvie, King-Edward, and Garnrie." 1

The family is said, by C.F. Shand, the family historian, to be descended from Philibert de Shaunde, Earl of Bath in 1485, who in turn, was descended from a noble house in Normandy. The Earl of Bath, Philibert Shaunde, was created by King Henry II of England and Normandy. Philibert was styled by the King as "Consanguineus noster." 2

Further south in England, the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 include: Johannes Schaune, Webster; and Thomas Shan. 3

Early History of the Scham family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Scham research. Another 91 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1522, 1551 and 1672 are included under the topic Early Scham History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Scham Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Shand, Chand, Schand, Chandai, Shandscross, Shawnd and many more.

Early Notables of the Scham family

More information is included under the topic Early Scham Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Scham migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Scham Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Hans Jurg Scham, who arrived in New York in 1709 4
Scham Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Martin Scham, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1802 4


The Scham 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: Virtute duce comite fortuna
Motto Translation: With valor my leader and good fortune my companion.


  1. Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
  2. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  3. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  4. 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)


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