Contents [hide]

Trewin History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Trewin History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The proud Trewin family originated in Cornwall, a rugged coastal region in southwestern England. In early times, people were known by only a single name. However, as the population grew and people traveled further afield, it became increasingly necessary to assume an additional name to differentiate between bearers of the same personal name. The manner in which hereditary surnames arose is interesting. Local surnames are derived from where the original bearer lived, was born, or held land. The Trewin family originally lived in Cornwall, at the manor of Trevanion.

Early Origins of the Trewin family

The surname Trewin was first found in Cornwall where they held a family seat at Trevanion. While the first records of the surname were from this area, we must look into Wales to understand the meaning of the word "trevanion, " for it is there that the word translates to "the meeting of streams."

Early History of the Trewin family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Trewin research. Another 186 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1250, 1330, 1379, 1483, 1529, 1539, 1613, 1625, 1640, 1643, 1666, 1670, 1672 and 1703 are included under the topic Early Trewin History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Trewin Spelling Variations

Cornish surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The official court languages, which were Latin and French, were also influential on the spelling of a surname. Since the spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. Lastly, spelling variations often resulted from the linguistic differences between the people of Cornwall and the rest of England. The Cornish spoke a unique Brythonic Celtic language which was first recorded in written documents during the 10th century. However, they became increasingly Anglicized, and Cornish became extinct as a spoken language in 1777, although it has been revived by Cornish patriots in the modern era. The name has been spelled Trevanion, Treavanion and others.

Early Notables of the Trewin family

Notable amongst the family at this time was John Trevanion (c. 1483-1539), of Dartmouth, Devon, an English politician, Member of the Parliament for Dartmouth in 1529; Charles Trevanion, an English politician, Member of Parliament for Cornwall in 1625; and his son, John Trevanion (1613-1643), an English politician, Member of Parliament...
Another 49 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Trewin Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Trewin migration to the United States +

A look at the immigration and passenger lists has shown a number of people bearing the name Trewin:

Trewin Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Benj. T. Trewin, aged 19, who landed in America, in 1894

Trewin Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Eveline Trewin, aged 32, who settled in America from Cornwall, in 1906
Jane Trewin, aged 52, who landed in America from Redruth, England, in 1908
John Henry Trewin, aged 49, who immigrated to the United States from Redruth, England, in 1910
Alfred Gordon Trewin, aged 20, who immigrated to the United States from Camborne, England, in 1922
Millicent Annie Trewin, aged 40, who settled in America from Bream, Gloucester, England, in 1923
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Trewin migration to Australia +

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

Trewin Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Trewin, English convict who was convicted in Buckinghamshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Atlas" on 16th January 1816, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 1
Mr. Lawrence Trewin, (b. 1818), aged 23, Cornish farm servant travelling aboard the ship "Westminster" arriving in Port Phillip, New South Wales, Australia on 30th July 1841 2
Mrs. Anne Trewin, (b. 1820), aged 21, Cornish farm servant travelling aboard the ship "Westminster" arriving in Port Phillip, New South Wales, Australia on 30th July 1841 2
Caroline Trewin, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Aboukir" in 1847 3
Mr. John Trewin, (b. 1832), aged 19, English agricultural labourer from Ulverston, Cumbria, England, UK departing from Plymouth on 24th March 1851 aboard the ship "John Knox" arriving in Point Henry, Geelong, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia on 15th July 1851 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Trewin 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:

Trewin Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mrs. Elizabeth Trewin, (b. 1848), aged 36, Cornish settler travelling aboard the ship "Doric" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 17th October 1884 5
Mr. James Trewin, (b. 1848), aged 36, Cornish bootmaker travelling aboard the ship "Doric" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 17th October 1884 5
Mr. William Trewin, (b. 1873), aged 11, Cornish settler travelling aboard the ship "Doric" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 17th October 1884 5

Trewin 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. 6

Trewin Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Jane Trewin, aged 26, who arrived in St Christopher in 1633 7

Contemporary Notables of the name Trewin (post 1700) +

Robert Trewin (b. 1962), English former professional footballer
Thomas Campion "Tom" Trewin (1914-1992), Australian politician, Member for Benalla (1961–1982)
Kai Trewin (b. 2001), Australian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Brisbane Roar (2020-)
John Courtenay "J.C" Trewin OBE (1908-1990), British journalist, writer, and drama critic from Plymouth, Devon
Ion Trewin (1943-2015), British literary director of the Man Booker Prize
Dennis J. Trewin, Australian head of the Australian Bureau of Statistics (2000-2007)

Citations +

Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/atlas
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 2018, May 30). Ships' Passenger Lists of Arrivals in New South Wales on (1828 - 1842, 1848 - 1849) [PDF]. Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_nsw_1838_on.pdf
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) ABOUKIR 1847. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1847Aboukir.htm
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retreived 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_australia_victoria.pdf
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 2018, April 30). Emigrants to Wellington 1872-1880 [PDF]. Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_nz_wellington.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
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)