Contents [hide]

Lyle History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Canada New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Suggested Reading Citations

Lyle History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland
England

Early Origins of the Lyle family

The surname Lyle was first found in Oxfordshire at Shirburn, a parish, in the union of Thame, hundred of Pirton. "This place was the property of Richard, Earl of Cornwall, and passed to Alice, wife of Warine de L'lsle, whose descendant of the same name obtained from Edward III. licence to embattle his house here. Shirburn Castle, the seat of the Earl of Macclesfield, is surrounded by a moat, over which is a drawbridge; it contains a noble hall, an armoury, and a suite of splendid apartments, with a fine collection of paintings, including a portrait of Catherine Parr, wife of Henry VIII." 1

The same Alice de Lisle, (note spelling change) was lady of the manor of Alwarton, in 1332. 2 "The family are descended from Radulphus de Insula, temp. William the Conqueror." 3

This name is one of the very few names that traces back to the Domesday Book of 1086. There the Latin form of the name: Hunfridus de Insula in Warwickshire was found. 4 Moreover, this is one of the very few forename and surname entries found there as in most cases only a surname was in use at that time. Later we found Peter de Isla in Yorkshire in 1166 and later again, Robert del Ille was listed as a Freeman of York in 1311. 5

"Isle is a common French place-name and the surname may sometimes derive from Lille (Nord), but it may also be of English origin. Robert de Insula, Bishop of Durham in 1274, was the son of poor crofters at Lindisfarne and took his name from Holy Isle." 5

Some of the family later held estates at Dibden in Southampton. "The church, a very ancient structure, has been thoroughly repaired and repewed, at a cost of £500, and some windows of painted glass have been inserted; it contains monuments to the Lisle family, who were lords of the manor, and of whom Lady Lisle was condemned to death by Judge Jeffries (Jeffreys)." 1

Despite the aforementioned, Scotland has traditionally held the lion's share of the family and most people claim descent from there as "a family of this name were barons of Duchal in Renfrewshire as early as the beginning of the thirteenth century. They were of the same stock as the Northumberland family of 'de Insula' (as the name appears in Latin) or 'Lisle' (de Lisle, Delisle in French). The first of the name in Scotland appears to have been Radulphus or Ralph de Insula, a follower of the Steward, who witnessed the gift by Baldwin de Bigre, sheriff of Lanharc (Lanark), of the church of Innerkyp to the monks of Paisley, c. 1170." 6

Early History of the Lyle family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lyle research. Another 152 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1058, 1296, 1610, 1617, 1632, 1659, 1664, 1685, 1716, 1767, 1788, 1790, 1795, 1797, 1801, 1805, 1809, 1810, 1825, 1831, 1849, 1853, 1857, 1865, 1875 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Lyle History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lyle Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Lyle, Lille, Lile, Lisle, Lyall, Lyal, Lyel and many more.

Early Notables of the Lyle family

Notable among the family at this time was Sir John Lisle (1610-1664), an English lawyer and politician who supported the Parliamentarian cause in the English Civil War, one of the Regicides of King Charles I of England, he was assassinated by an agent of the crown while in...
Another 47 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Lyle Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lyle Ranking

In the United States, the name Lyle is the 2,192^nd most popular surname with an estimated 14,922 people with that name. 7

Migration of the Lyle family to Ireland

Some of the Lyle family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 76 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lyle migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Lyle Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

John Lyle, who landed in Maryland in 1663 8
William Lyle, aged 22, who landed in Virginia in 1684 8
William Lyle, who settled in Virginia in 1684
Roger Lyle, who settled in Virginia in 1691

Lyle Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

James Lyle, who settled in New York in 1762
David Lyle, who settled in New York in 1775
David Lyle, aged 29, who arrived in New York in 1775 8
Jas, Lyle Jr., who arrived in Virginia in 1794 8

Lyle Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Mathew Lyle, aged 64, who arrived in South Carolina in 1812 8
Robertson Lyle, aged 23, who landed in South Carolina in 1812 8
Alexander Lyle, who was naturalized in New York, NY in 1834
Hugh Lyle, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1850 8
Andrew Lyle, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1856 8
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Lyle migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Lyle Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Gavin Lyle, who settled in Nova Scotia in 1770

Lyle Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Andrew Lyle, aged 30, a seaman, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1838 aboard the barque "Rebecca" from Liverpool, England

Lyle 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:

Lyle Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Miss Mary Lyle, (b. 1844), aged 23, British domestic servant travelling from London aboard the ship "Glenmark" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 14th November 1867 9
Mr. Frederick Lyle, (b.1846), aged 28, Cornish farm labourer departing on 10th October 1874 aboard the ship "Warwick" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 2nd February 1875 10

Contemporary Notables of the name Lyle (post 1700) +

Thomas Stanford Lyle (1953-2019), American comics artist, best known for his work on Starman and Robin for DC Comics, and Spider-Man for Marvel Comics
Vice Admiral Alexander Gordon Lyle (1889-1955), American Naval officer awarded the Medal of Honor
Donald Eugene Lyle (1941-2003), American country singer, who went by the name Johnny Paycheck
George D. Lyle, American Republican politician, Candidate in primary for U.S. Representative from Michigan 15th District, 1948 11
George B. Lyle, American politician, Mayor of Atlanta, Georgia, 1942 11
Freddrenna Lyle, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Illinois, 2008 11
F. W. Lyle, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Michigan National Democratic State Central Committee, 1899 11
David Lyle, American politician, Representative from New York 18th District, 1906 11
Clarence Lyle, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Alabama, 1956 11
Charles Lyle, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Michigan, 1964 11
... (Another 12 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Lyle family +

HMS Hood

Mr. James P Lyle (b. 1919), English Able Seaman serving for the Royal Navy from Battersea, London, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 12

The Lyle 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: Sedulo et honeste
Motto Translation: Diligently and honestly.

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Hutchins, Fortescue, The History of Cornwall, from the Earliest Records and Traditions to the Present Time. London: William Penaluna, 1824. Print
Sims, Clifford Stanley The Origin and Signification of Scottish Surnames. 1862. Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
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)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 2018, April 30). Emigrants to Auckland 1872-80 [PDF]. Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/new_zealand_assisted.pdf
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 3) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm