Show ContentsWannop History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Wannop family

The surname Wannop was first found in Sussex where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor. After the Battle of Hastings in 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, having prevailed over King Harold, granted most of Britain to his many victorious Barons. It was not uncommon to find a Baron, or a Bishop, with 60 or more Lordships scattered throughout the country. These he gave to his sons, nephews and other junior lines of his family and they became known as under-tenants. They adopted the Norman system of surnames which identified the under-tenant with his holdings so as to distinguish him from the senior stem of the family. After many rebellious wars between his Barons, Duke William, commissioned a census of all England to determine in 1086, settling once and for all, who held which land. He called the census the Domesday Book, 1 indicating that those holders registered would hold the land until the end of time. Hence, conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands of Wannock, held by William, a Norman noble, from the Count of Mortain, who was recorded in the Domesday Book census of 1086.

Early History of the Wannop family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wannop research. Another 63 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1140, 1296 and 1332 are included under the topic Early Wannop History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wannop Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Wannock, Wannick, Wanwick, Wanwock, Wonnick, Wonnock, Onewick, Onewock, Wammock, Wammick, Wennock, Wennick, Wenwick, Winnock, Winnwick and many more.

Early Notables of the Wannop family

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


New Zealand Wannop 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:

Wannop Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Thomas Wannop, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Oliver Lang" in 1858


  1. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)


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