Underhile History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• England

Etymology of Underhile

The ancestors of the bearers of the Underhile family name are thought have lived in ancient Anglo-Saxon England. They were first found at the foot of a hill or in the settlement of Underhill in Devon. The surname Underhile belongs to both the category of habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads, and the class of topographic surnames, which were given to people who resided near physical features such as hills, streams, churches, or types of trees.

Early Origins of the Underhile family

Early History of the Underhile family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Underhile research. Another 114 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1268, 1275, 1509, 1515, 1518, 1539, 1545, 1561, 1592, 1603, 1625, 1630, 1634, 1637, 1641, 1672 and 1710 are included under the topic Early Underhile History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Underhile 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 Underhile include Underhill, Undrell and others.

Early Notables of the Underhile family

Edward Underhill (fl. 1539-1561), the 'hot-gospeller,' who came 'of a worshipful house in Worcestershire,' and was born probably about 1515. His grandfather, John Underhill, originally of Wolverhampton, acquired in 1509 a lease of Eatington, Warwickshire, and left two sons, Edward and Thomas. Edward inherited Eatington, and was father of Thomas Underhill (1518?-1603), was a leading Protestant. 1 John Underhill (ca. 1545-1592), was an English academic, and later, bishop of Oxford. Cave Underhill (1634-1710?), was an English actor, the son of Nicholas Underhill, clothworker, born in St. Andrew's parish, Holborn. 1 John Underhill (d. 1672), was an American colonist who came of a Warwickshire...
Another 113 words (8 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Underhile Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Underhile family

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 Underhile or a variant listed above: John Underhill, who arrived in Boston Massachusetts with his wife in 1630; Constant and Ffrancis Underhil, who both came to Virginia in 1663; Richard Underhill, who arrived in Barbados in 1654.