Show ContentsWinnchel History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Winnchel family

The surname Winnchel was first found in Berwickshire where they held a family seat from very ancient times at Winscheill near Duns, 12 miles west of Berwick on Tweed, in that shire. 1 Notable in Berwickshire is Duns Castle.

Further to the south, Robert de Winchelsea (d. 1313) was "Archbishop of Canterbury [and] derived his name from Old Winchelsea in Kent, where he was probably born. A confusion of him with a namesake, John Winchelsea, has led to the improbable assertion that he was a fellow of Merton College. " 2

Today, Winchelsea is an ancient town in Sussex. 3 Dating back to at least 1130, the town literally means "island by a river bend." from the Old English "wincel" + "eg." 4

The Assize Rolls of Northumberland recorded Hawis Wenchel in 1203 and later, the Assize Rolls for Cheshire listed Puncok le Wenchill. 5

Early History of the Winnchel family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Winnchel research. Another 91 words (6 lines of text) covering the year 1280 is included under the topic Early Winnchel History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Winnchel Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Winchell, Winchel, Winshell, Wynchell, Wynshell, Wynchel, Wynchil and many more.

Early Notables of the Winnchel family

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

Migration of the Winnchel family

Some of the first settlers of this family name or some of its variants were: Joe Winchell settled in New England in 1635 with Elizabeth his mother; Robert Winchell settled in Virginia in 1653; Nicholas Winchel arrived in Philadelphia in 1752..



  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of Scotland. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  2. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  3. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  4. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  5. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)


Houseofnames.com on Facebook