Normansell

This most interesting surname, is English but of early French influence. It is believed to originate from a village in the department of Seine-Inferiure, Normandy, an area which supplied many followers to the army of William the Conqueror in 1066. The surname as Normansell is believed to be one of the many dialectal forms of the famous French 'de Normanville', members of whose 'family' held extensive estates in Sussex and Yorkshire from the 11th century onwards. The proof of origin would seem to be born out by the early church recordings which show a drift of spelling from de Normanville of the 15th century, to Normanvell, Normanell and Normabell in Yorkshire by the year 1545. The spelling as Normansell follows the same trend, the intrusive "s" being added to aid pronunciation. This development may be from London, as the name is apparently first recorded there on May 30th 1621, when one John Normansell married Jane Leader at St Giles church, Cripplegate. Thereafter the surname, whilst never more than rare, was regularly recorded in the city of London. The coat of arms has the blazon of a silver field, on a fess between four barrulets, three fleur de lis of the field, and a bend sinister in blue. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Emma de Normanvill, which was dated 1195, in the pipe rolls of the county of Sussex, during the reign of King Richard 1, known as 'The Lionheart', 1189 - 1199.