Penn History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Penn

What does the name Penn mean?

The ancestry of the name Penn dates from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It comes from when the family lived near an area that was referred to as the Penn. The surname Penn is a toponymic surname which described where the original bearer held land. In this case the surname was originally derived from the Old English words penn, meaning an area that housed stray animals and penn which referred to a hill. 1

“Pen is a Celtic topographical word, signifying ‘a conical top, generally in a range of hills, as Penchrise-pen, Skelfhill-pen, &c.’. But there are several parishes, &c., to which this signification does not apply, in the counties of Buckingham and Stafford.” 2

Early Origins of the Penn family

The surname Penn was first found in Buckingham at Penn, a parish, in the union of Amersham, hundred of Burnham. 3

Penn is also a parish, in the union, and N. division of the hundred, of Seisdon in Staffordshire and while this parish dates back to the Domesday Book when it was known as Penne, 4 it is the former that traditionally most of the family hails.

Indeed, the family of William Penn (1644-1718), founder of the Province of Pennsylvania (today, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania) traces their origin to Penn, Buckinghamshire. 2 5

Early rolls provide a glimpse of various spellings and areas of ancient Britain that at one time were the family’s ancient homesteads. Warin de Penne was listed in the Pipe Rolls for Staffordshire in 1176 and a few years later, Walter de la Penne was found in the Pipe Rolls for Berkshire in 1196. John ate Penne was listed in Cornwall in 1297; Adam son of Penne was listed at Wakefield, Yorkshire in 1277; and John Penn(e) was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1327 and the Subsidy Rolls for Essex. 6

Penn Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Penn have been found, including Penn, Pen, Penner and others.

Early Notables of the Penn family

Distinguished members of the family include

• Sir William Penn (1621-1670), an English admiral
• Springett Penn (1674-1696) English-born, second son
• William Penn, Jr. (1681-1720), the eldest surviving son of William Penn