The Harrell Family Research
Collaborative Database
The History of the "Harrell" Surname
The
Harrell Saga from 1600s to Present The
Harrell Family Collaborative Database
currently contains over 5000 (pre-1900)
names with 32 Harrell Family Lines and
is the culmination of over 30 years
research, resulting in a sourced,
illustrated & documented interactive
database.
Some
writers relate the name to a place in
Normandy named Harel, while others
suppose it developed from Saxton words
'here' and 'weald' which supposedly mean
'army-power'.. Herrell is a name which
was recorded in England long before
William The Conqueror invaded England in
1066, killing King Harold at the Battle
of Hastings.
This
brings us to Norsemen and the Vikings,
many of whom were related to the Harrald
Families of Norway and Denmark. Having
researched into the history and old
sagas of these families, I am of the
opinion that the name probably
originated among the Norsemen of
Northern Europe.. It was in use by 700
A.D. and came into prominence when
Fairhair Harrald subdued all the other
Chieftains in Norway and proclaimed
himself King of that country. He ruled
from about 872 to 935 when his son Erik
Bloodax Harraldson became King.. Erik
left Norway when challenged by the
youngest son of Fairhair Harrald, Hakon
Harraldson, who had been reared in the
house of the King of England.
The "Harrell" Name Often recorded as
Hurran, Hurren, Harrell, Harrill,
Horrell, Hurrell, Orrell, this is an
English diminutive surname, but of
Norman-French origins. Introduced into
England at the famous Conquest of 1066,
it derives the verb "hurer" meaning to
bristle or stand up, and was originally
a nickname for someone with a good head
of hair. An example of an early
recording of the name is that of Richard
Horel in the charters of the abbey of
Rievalux, Yorkshire, and dated 1154, and
John Hurle, in the Oxfordshire Hundred
Rolls of landowners in 1273. Later
examples taken from surviving church
registers of the city of London include
Grace Hurrell who was married to
Nicholas Reynolds on the 17th September
1627 at St. Gregory's by St. Paul,
London, whilst on May 11th 1648, William
Horrell married Aphra Thomas at St.
Botolphs Bishopgate. Surnames became
necessary when governments introduced
personal taxation. In England this was
sometimes known as the Poll Tax.
Throughout the centuries, surnames in
every country have continued to
"develop" often leading to astonishing
variants of the original spelling. It
seems the earliest Harrells to arrive in
the New World included Henry,
Christopher and Thomas Harrell (from
Kent, England) in approximately 1640 AD.
As the techniques of Genealogy Research
progresses, and with the onset of global
communication, the average or even the
advanced genealogist has many resources
available and readily at their disposal.
The end result and the reason for this
collaborative effort is obvious; we have
been able to connect with others and
explain our family past history in much
greater detail and with increased
accuracy. With the onset of new and
powerful software like Ancestral Quest
12.1 and Internet programs like Map
Quest, not to mention online databases
like World Vital Records.com &
Ancestry.com, Genealogy has once again
become a "still challenging" but "fun"
hobby.
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